A New Era, A New Hero
by Axel-Rize
Summary: After the Era of Twilight the time has come once more, a great evil threatens the land and a new hero must save it, but is the new hero really the one? Only time will tell if this not-so-heroic hero can rise to the task... Will be heavily LinkxMidna-centric, hints of harem.
1. Hero Material?

**1\. Hero material?**

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 **I'd like to thank RyoshiMorino, Blizzaga Saga, Magus and a certain Lil' Taurus for giving me the muse to work on this story and I urge anyone reading this to read their collaborative story Release my story will be taking bits of lore from it. I appreciate any feedback or ideas.**

 **Lemons/sex are on the following chapters: 10, ...**

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Everything seemed to shift and waver morphing from shape to shape as Link dreamed, a spiral slowly curling in an arc before the it began to sink starting from the center until the spiral resembled a deep hole. As he stood on the edge of the deep hole the ground seemed to rumble before the very depths filled with a shifting black mass that quickly flew up and into the sky. With each sharp whoosh produced Link could see that they were actually black scales, although with the sudden surge of their ascension the ground at his feet crumbled and he fell into the blackness.

As everything became solid black a bluish white light appeared far in the distance that seemed to waver this way and that as it came closer small wings could be seen on it as the fairy began to fly towards him. With a sudden rush the fairy flew into his face and everything became pale blue as he stood in shallow water not even high enough to cover his boots. While it wasn't deep the water reflected the room in it making it seem endless before his deep blue eyes fell on a single bit of land within the center of the huge room with a single withered tree standing in the center. However as he made a single step forward, the ripple traveled ahead of him and as it hit the island the ripple would spread out from the mass of land but it was now turning the water black. Before he could do anything the blackness had trapped his feet and a black figure rose out of the water before him and as it slowly opened it's eyes, a red abyss could be seen, which would flash sinking him into a void.

The red void seemed to suffocate him like it was blood trying to drown him as he sank deeper and deeper. However as he began to slow, the crimson started to form into shapes, humanoid shapes, with long limbs and a central body. It made up four distinct bodies standing around him as he stood on a wide platform overlooking a whole town while the giants stood to the North, South, East, and West. In unison they brought their arms up into the air as if praying which drew his eyes to the sky above him where the angry face of what looked like a moon was falling fast before a golden flash rang out.

The golden light seemed to blot with black revealing a sky of gold with black clouds crawling across it while black specs seemed to float up into the sky where chunks of earth seemed to float in place. It was then that he became acutely aware that he was being held in a sitting position, down around his chest were arms with skin that was toned black and blue with straight glowing blue patterns etched across the skin. The dusky pigment caused his eyes to gaze up along the being's shoulder where nearly neon orange hair fell across the skin beckoning the boy's eyes higher as he shifted to look behind him at the being holding him. Her face was the same pale blue as her hands with pale purple lips turned up in a gentle smile, then he'd find her eyes, sharp but soft as she looked at him with red irises framed by yellow sclera hooded by the same purple over her eyelids. Her appearance was stunning, otherworldly and the sound of her giggle seemed to echo around him hanging in the air around him before her lips parted speaking soft. "What's wrong? Am I so beautiful you've no words left?"

"Link?" Her voice reached the boy once more but his vision began to shift and waver once more.

"Link..."Her voice repeated again though the sound of his name began to waver like an echo as everything became distorted like the reflection in a pond as the water rippled.

"L...i...n...k..." One last faint echo hung in the air as it all fell away... and he woke up.

~X~

"LINK WAKE UP!" The harsh gravelly voice of his brother boomed as his massive hands shook the blonde in his bed earning a tired and annoyed growl as he rolled away from him.

"Leave me alone... pretty blue girl..." Link muttered under his breath burying his face back into his pillow. Although the sudden silence should have been the first clue that something was wrong before his bed suddenly shifted from a horizontal position to a vertical one throwing link out onto the floor. "Dammit bro really?"

"Damn right!" The blonde glared at his brother as he smirked and set his bed back down on the floor. "You know the deal, no sleeping in on hunting days, get your stuff together."

"Screw you!" Link called after his brother as he ran out of the room presumably to get his own gear ready. With a deep sigh he lifted himself back onto his bed sitting up as he rubbed his face from the forceful expulsion of his bed. With tired sapphire blue eyes he looked around his room before looking down at himself, clad in simple white shirt and underwear for his sleepwear. A low groan slipped from his lips as he pushed himself up from his bed stretching while he felt the cool air drift in from his open window. Moving over to his closet with maximum effort link rummaged through it for his hunting gear; a simple green tunic with matching hat to blend into the brush, chain-mail in case of the hunt going bad, tan denim, and leather boots.

While he was getting himself dressed a small clatter could be heard behind him and the blonde whirled around in a flash bring back his left arm armed with his right boot poised to hurl it at the intruding rodent or insect, while he only had the right arm of his tunic on. While he was correct about it being a rodent, it wasn't a rat just his brother again holding his bow ready and a quiver full of arrows.

"Well... you're the very image of courage aren't you Link?" While his older brother smirked at how the blonde looked, Link took the opportunity to throw the boot at him anyway which thunked against his barreled chest before falling to the floor while he continued to dress himself rolling his eyes.

"Thanks for the arrows, paying me back for all the shots you made me miss last time?" The blonde smirked at his brother giving him his own sleight as he adjusted the tunic and chain-mail before fastening his belt and taking the quiver from his brother first to set it around his torso before finally grabbing his left over boot form the floor and slipping it on.

"Nah I just think you're such a bad shot that you need the extra ammo." As brother always do, they fought while he tossed Link his bow before leading the way down the hall and descending the stairs leading to the lower floor and the entrance to their home. While his brother's large build filled the hall with muscle as a thick as trees a feminine voice sounded from one of the lower rooms.

"Link, are you and your brother heading out?" The soft voice asked as the two teens reached the bottom of the steps. As his brother motioned for Link to stay he exited the house just before their mother came through one of the doorways leading further into the house.

"Yeah Ma, it's hunting season and you know how he is if he can't be the big bad hunter." As he spoke the woman's green eyes twinkled as she giggled before hugging him. While she was just slighter than Link himself, both her face and hair betrayed her youth as well as her vigor for life. Link knew their mother had adopted each of them very early in her life, probably no younger than sixteen as he was now, but she fought and raised them like a wild Ordon goat.

"Look over your brother Link, his heart is in the right place but he doesn't always look where he steps." Her soft smile reminded him of many of the young women he had seen in the streets of the kingdom to the north. Although her sheer will and strength made the knights look like children when she was mad.

"I will Ma, see you after a while." With a quick peck on her cheek, Link slipped outside to join his brother who was heading towards him coming from the barn after making sure to feed the animals. "Ready?"

"Are you kidding? I was born ready." Clad in rough black chain mail with black armored gloves covering his arms, his brother wore two massive swords on his back while he wore black leather leg covers and black greaves to match the gauntlets. Link had always though his style was tacky, it was like he was trying to imitate a Darknut from the ghost stories that the elders told children to keep them out of the ruins around the countryside. However after Link rolled is eyes he caught sight of a set of claw marks along the left gauntlet which brought to mind his memories of when a Ordon Grizzly had snuck up on Link during a hunt and the fact that his brother threw himself into the bear to save him was the only reason the blonde was standing there today.

"Well... Come on then." His blue eyes rose to meet the gold of his brothers before motioning towards the woods that surrounded their small village, the woods of the Ordon province were relatively average compared to the massive jungle that the Faron region had grown into. Although the village of Ordon laid along the border between the two regions, the brother's own village of Kokiri that sat on the Eastern edge of Ordon. According to the tales told around the village it had originally been populated by a race of forest spirits but they gave their homes to them out of good will and disappeared into the forest.

"Hey you okay Link? You don't usually drop our little exchange out of the blue." While Link didn't have expected his brother to catch a shift in attitude he could attribute it to the years they had spent together.

"Yeah just hoping to find something fast, I wanna go back to sleep," While it wasn't a lie, Link's words bellied a bit of humility from his brother's act to protect him. "Remember, Ma told us to look out for new plants to harvest on the farm."

"Yeah yeah I know it's not like we haven't scoured the whole forest for fruits and vegetables over the years, I'm more interested in finding new meat." As his brother spoke Link could hear the smirk on his lips earning another roll of his eyes before he reached a strange set of fresh prints in the earth they looked like hoof prints but they were bigger and deeper than any animal in the area even an Ordonian goat's, but something else was wrong it seemed like there was only a set of two feet... that couldn't be right.

"Quiet... Something is here." With the quiet command his brother crouched low following Link's lead, after years of hunting he knew Link was the more trained tracker trusting his instincts. In a simple fluid movement, Link moved his bow down his arm to grasp the handle while his other hand reached back into his quiver for an arrow before setting it and continuing forward following the tracks as they began to sink even deeper into the ground. The soft trickling of a river could be heard ahead and easily explained how the tracks sank further into the wet soil, slowly coming to the river's edge covered with loose sand and stones. A faint sigh escaped Link's lips as he stood again rubbing the back of his neck, the tracks had came to an end as if whatever had made them had vanished into thin air.

"What is it Link?" His brother questioned him confused, through all of their hunts they had never come across tracks like these before, neither the size, pattern, or depth; the set closest to the water even having a small amount of water pooled into the bottom of them.

"I'm not sure... I know these tracks are fres- what?" Link's words were cut off as the water in the print began to shimmer and tremble, just as quickly as the water had began to ripple the ground itself started to rumble as if something was moving underground.

Or charging...

"SCATTER NOW!" Reacting on pure instinct Link jumped to the side of the river, his brother mimicking the movement but away from Link as a massive creature narrowly missed them both with a massive spear as it dashed out into the river spraying water everywhere as ti swiftly adjusted its body with a sharp turn as it faced the brothers. The beast was easily two feet taller than his brother while it's upper body looked like that of a man and it's lower half being that of a goat with giant powerful legs that matched the tracks they had following however it's face was hideous like something mixed between a goblin and a boar as a pair of yellow tusks extended from it's drooling lips and it's glowing yellow eyes shifted between the two while Link readied his bow and his brother reached back pulling the twin great swords from their place on his back. "Be careful, this isn't some animal it was smart enough to use a false track to get the jump on us."

"Some giant pig isn't going to take me down!" His brother yelled as he charged the monster who now focused on him and readied it's spear to charge him. Despite the current it rushed through the water with a speed that was unbelievable for it's size though Link was slightly quicker, with a strong draw and fast aim the sound of an arrow slicing through the air could be heard of the thrashing water before being followed by a roar from the creature as it faltered in it's charge and reached for Link's arrow pulling it free from just above it's left eye, though at that moment the monster set it's raging eyes on the bowman only to receive a grin.

"Checkmate." Link lowered his bow s his brother laid into the monster with both blades across it's torso with enough power to launch it a few feet into the water face first, darkening the water with it's black blood.

"Oh yeah! I knew we had it Link, why were you so worried?" While his brother laughed proud of his kill, Link made his way over to him watching the body the whole time taking note of the black color adding to the river from the monster's open wounds.

"Well let's see, it had a weapon, it tricked us and ambushed us, oh and it's bleeding black." Link retorted before looking back up at his brother but what he saw made his arms go weak as he dropped his bow into the water and his eyes went wide.

The monster was charging again.

In that single moment Link could see that the wounds it took had barely cut through the skin let alone the hardened muscle beneath and the rushing of the river had drowned out any noise it had made as it climbed back to it's feet and readied it's vicious spear. Reacting on a dime Link threw his body into his brother shoving him backwards just enough to be out of the target zone.

"Ganondorf run!" The words were silenced as soon as they had come out as the monster rushed by the red haired Gerudo and it's massive spear tip sank past Link's chain-mail and into his side, the force of the charge alone sending the teen flying back to the river bank as a sharp crack to the back of his head made his world cut to black.


	2. Power Awoken

**2\. Power Awoken**

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As Ganondorf watched his brother impaled and sent flying time seemed to slow down to an agonizing halt, before him his brother had only flown a few feet through the air but he could see the hole sliced through his tunic and even where the chain-mail had been cleaved as blood hung in the air trailing back to the spear carried by the imposing monster. All traces of mirth drained from the Gerudo as he felt his body begin to seethe with rage, the very air around him like flames as his golden gaze locked onto the monster and he readied his blades. Every inch of him felt weightless as Ganondorf charged against the beast slamming his shoulder into it from the side sending it sprawling into the water just as he heard his brother hit the shore.

"I'll tear you to shreds you disgusting monster!" Ganondorf roared as the monster clambered back to a standing position to face down the red-headed warrior though it faltered briefly as if it recognized him. Taking the opening, Ganondorf surged in driving his blades down in a powerful slash but the beast's reflexes proved slightly better as it managed to roll away with only a gash in its upper arm. While the pan seared through its body the monster no longer seemed to hesitate and brought it's spear level at its side once more before roaring with enough force for the water to be pushed away and charged Ganondorf again.

Smart would never be a word anyone would use to describe Ganondorf, but deft was. Staring down the beast as it came closer he could see the blood from the wound Link inflicted finally reach the monster's eye making it wince and lose focus for the briefest moment allowing Ganondorf to shift his posture bringing one foot back enough to where the spear would miss him by an inch as it came and he used both hands to grasp the handle of his massive blade. When the beast was close enough Ganondorf crouched down and just as the spear would narrowly miss his face he lunged forward driving his blade point first up through the soft fleshy part beneath it's maw with enough force to lift both fighters from the ground. With a final powerful drive he slammed the blade into the earth beneath the river hearing the cracking sound as the monster's skull was shattered from the force of the Gerudo's deadly attack.

Once the water had turned black and brackish Ganondorf would stand, his long red hair wet with blood and water clinging to his shoulders before everything came back to him shocking his eyes wide as he began to frantically look around for Link quickly finding the blood stained green body at the edge of the water. Moving like he ran on stone rather than through water he swiftly reached his brother tearing off his own undershirt bunching it up against the wound to staunch the bleeding before he lifted Link into his arms without missing a beat as he swiftly moved through the forest using his bulk rather than the agility Link possessed to tear through the foliage keeping his brother safe.

"Don't you dare die on me Link!" Ganondorf cursed himself for the injury while his eyes were fixed ahead without noticing the golden glow that bloomed on the back of his right hand briefly before fading away. Almost instantly he could see the smoke climbing in the sky from Kokiri village urging and pushing his body harder, Ganondorf slammed through the last few saplings that stood in his way skidding along the flat ground and pausing just long enough to get his bearings from emerging from the forest. The surrounding villagers who had been going along their days all froze at his sudden appearance before a young woman screamed.

"Link!?" One woman cried.

"Oh Goddess help us..." Another gasped covering her mouth.

"Ganondorf what happened out there!?" An older farmer yelled dropping his bag of onions.

"EVERYONE SHUT UP AND GET ME THE DOCTOR!" His voice carried reverberating through the village silencing most and sending a few children scurrying to safety scared of the hulking teen. The uproar hadn't gone unnoticed by anyone in the village bringing out everyone from their homes and as large and imposing as Ganondorf was, clad in armor and powerful enough to rip trees from the earth, the sound of his mother's voice catching in her throat broke his heart and the rage left him sapping his strength as he turned to see the woman in tears and covering her mouth.

"L-Link... My son..." As if time itself had stopped, the village had become dead silent as she ran to her sons holding Link's face looking him over as her hand grabbed the bundle of cloth Ganondorf had fashioned into wrap to slow his bleeding keeping the pressure on it as the village doctor finally reached them as if appearing out of nowhere. Sound came to him muffled and distant merely following the doctor's motions as he followed him to his house and laid him on the bed before slowly stepping back.

The doctor worked fast moving the cloth away from the wound and lifting up Link's tunic and chain-mail so he would operate on the wound splashing it with a clear liquid that quickly became apparent was alcohol as the smell assaulted Ganondorf's nose bringing him out of the weakened daze but also stirring his stomach making him run outside before he fell to the ground heaving and wrenching as his stomach voided its contents into the grass. As he coughed from the bitter taste, tears filled the edges of his vision, slowly leaning back into a sitting position his golden eyes stared at the sky sending a silent prayer to the Goddesses. 'Farore, Din, Nayru... Please save my brother...'

Time seemed to stretch on forever as he waited to hear from the doctor, the clouds shifted and churned in the skies above and the color slowly shifted from blue to orange when the door finally opened making him rise to his feet catching his mother as she hugged him tightly shaking. Ganondorf feared the worst but as the doctor emerged he gave him a nod as he himself finally had a chance to get a breath of air.

"He'll live and it's thanks to you boy, if you had been minutes later he would've bled out. However the wound seemed to slice through him without missing any organs and that in itself is a miracle." With a deep breath the doctor would fish out a pipe from his coat before placing the end in his mouth and striking it a blaze to light the pipe. After a few deep drags and once his mother had calmed down enough to clasp her hands together to offer her prayers and thanks to the Goddesses a few of the men of the village usually charged with protecting the village from the rogue goblin that would attempt to attack the village came over. Their gazes would move over each of them from Ganondorf to his mother and finally the doctor before their leader, Sorin spoke up.

"I offer my prayers and apologies for young Link, Malona" While he spoke soft and earnest her son held her defensively as she wiped her tears and offered him a pained smile. Sorin's watchmen Garin and Ryu would nod their heads to her and Ganondorf before Sorin looked to the Gerudo.

"I trust from your reactions he will pull through, will you tell me what happened?" Sorin asked politely while Ganondorf's golden eyes glanced down at his mother before letting out a breath he didn't know he was holding and looking up to meet the guardian's.

"We had found and were tracking a large set of prints toward the river but when we reached it we were ambushed by the monster that had made them." He recounted the events just as he remembered them happening from his perspective closing his eyes to better immerse himself. "It was massive, bigger than me and some strange mix of a goat, man, and boar, it used a spear appropriate for it's size."

"A Moblin..." Sorin muttered as all of them stared at Ganondorf like he had just told them about seeing a demon. "Please continue..."

"It tried to charge us right from the beginning but Link could feel it coming and told me to move out of the way just as he jumped aside. After the beast was in the clear we could see it fully while it stood in the river, I ran in to attack it and Link had shot an arrow into it's face just above it's eye giving me an opening to slam both of my swords into its chest... We- I thought we had killed it, but the next thing I knew Link had shoved me back just in time to avoid being impaled on the monster's pike... He took the blow in my place... His condition is my fault..." The words seemed to choke Ganondorf's throat as he stared at the earth at his feet feeling a soul sucking weight deep in his chest, he was the big brother, the older, it was his responsibility to protect Link, just like when the bear tried to attack him.

"No." A single quiet but strong word punctured the silence drawing the Gerudo's eyes to his mother as she glared at him with fresh tears around her bright blue eyes. "He's your brother too, you know that he would be just as mad if he saw you blaming yourself for what happened."

"Your mother's right Gan, I taught Link how to use his bow and when I asked him why he truly wanted to learn how to be an archer he told me it was so that he could protect his family if he ever needed to." Sorin placed his hands on both Ganondorf and Malona's shoulders his striking eyes moving from her to him filled with conviction only a former High Knight of Hyrule could have. "Within that slacker lays more resolve than most of the knights I served with, not protecting you is against his being."

"I... I can't help it..." The red-headed teen said softly feeling comforted by both of them knowing just how much potential laid in his younger brother.

"It's of no consequence now, I trust that the monster was slain at your hand after harming your kin," This time the doctor spoke up watching the event from his door while taking slow long drags off his pipe. "Young Link will recover so don't beat yourself up, if it'll make you feel better stay the night at his bedside."

"Thank you... Yeah I'll stay with him." Ganondorf would nod to the physician before the older man went back into his home leaving the door open so he could follow. As his eyes then moved to his mother she would smile and hug him tightly.

"I'm proud of both of you Ganondorf, there's nothing more I could ask for than for you and Link to form this kind of bond despite everything." The Gerudo knew she meant the fact that none of them were related by blood but they knew it wasn't blood that made a family. After a quick peck on his cheek she would step away before beginning to head towards their home though Sorin caught her hand stopping her.

"I would like to walk you home Malona due to recent events, afterwards I'll recover your weapons and the body of the monster if that is alright with you Ganondorf." The man asked his eyes level with the red-head as he asked his permission as a gentleman would, to which he could only simply nod, Sorin was a good man that he knew and even if he was protective of his mother, Sorin wasn't a man she needed protecting from, with a noble bow to the golden-eyed teen he would move to his mother's side to walk her home while Garin and Ryu each returned to their homes.

After another moment Ganondorf would look into the doctor's home as the gold and orange shafts of light born of the twilight hour pierced the skies staining everything with color, though in this moment the outline of a woman could be seen standing over Link touching his face. A weight fell in his stomach as he rushed inside toward the woman reaching out to grab her but she vanished in the same instant she had appeared forcing the Gerudo to blink his eyes and look around for her. Though when all he found was the doctor round the corner with a bowl of soup and a blanket he let his tension fade from his form humbly accepting the meal and placing the folded blanket in his lap as he sat beside Link's bed.

"Ordon cheese and pumpkin soup, very creamy and healthy, it's a shame I don't have any salmon." The doctor commented before returning to his kitchen allowing Ganondorf to have some time to himself and a chance to eat. After a short while had passed, the teen had finished the bowl and it was immediately traded out with a full bowl courtesy of the doctor mumbling something about growing boys. The older man brought a smile to his lips feeling embraced by the people he had grown up around. After finishing the second bowl he rose to his feet and went to the kitchen where the doctor had fallen asleep at the table after finishing his food, realizing that Link was probably in his only bed Ganondorf draped the blanket he was given over the man before washing out the bowls in the sink of warm water and setting them on a drying rack, doing at least that much after everything the doctor had done. Although as he finished he heard the front door creak and quickly moved back to Link's bed where he could see the door as Sorin closed it behind him.

"Easy, returning your gear champ," With night having fallen Sorin was clad in leathers and mail giving him protection and mobility for whatever he may have found in the forest. As he rested Ganondorf's dual swords and Link's bow against the wall he also set down what looked like a wrapped package beside them. Eyeing the package for a second Ganondorf would then look up to meet the man's own gaze nodding in thanks for returning with his weaponry though the package still confused him. "We also need to talk, the body was gone when I got there."

"How is that possible... I left one of my blades in its head!" The teen growled but quickly caught himself not wanting to wake either his brother or the doctor, Sorin with a quiet gesture lead him outside into the cool night air, orange light from torches illuminating parts of the village.

"Don't worry that isn't the most troubling thing to worry about." With a deep sigh Sorin would shake his head before finally meeting the Gerudo's eyes once more. "In Hyrule we have a legend passed down from generation to generation of an evil destined to return until the end of time trying to rule the world and cover it in darkness. The minions of that evil disappear in a burst of darkness as their bodies destabilize."

"That can't be true though, you just said it was a legend." Ganondorf responded not believing him, the mere concept that an ancient evil could return to wreak havoc or even minions of darkness that were capable of dieing and not leaving a corpse.

"I know it sounds like a bad fairy tale to keep children in line, but the story of the Stalfos are true as well." Sorin hadn't expected the teen to just smile and accept the story especially after facing down a Moblin. "I believe the king needs to be notified of this I would go myself but I think it's best if I stay in case of another attack like this happens again, I'd like to ask you to go in my place with a letter of reference from me."

The news of a dark legend coming to light and now being asked to go to the king and warn him about these things happening made his thoughts swim before he finally shook his head. "I can't... Link is still out cold and I have to be here for my mother."

"Your determination is commendable Ganondorf," Sorin smiled genuinely and placed his hand on the teen's shoulder. "I hope you understand I wouldn't ask this of you if I could go without worrying about our home."

"I... Okay... I'll go for you." With a heaving breath Ganondorf conceded to the former knight knowing that his logic was sound in duty.

"Thank you, I'll have the letter ready by morning, and your request will be free of charge." Sorin smiled as he patted the Gerudo's shoulder confusing him for a moment before he remembered what he spoke of. Sorin was also the village blacksmith and Ganondorf had placed an order to have a sword and shield made for Link a short time ago.

"Oh, right. Thank you Sorin, When do you expect to be finished?" After remembering the order, he was curious of how Sorin had progressed with it since then.

"Already finished, it's in the package inside ready for your brother to open." The blacksmith grinned openly as the news shocked the teen, the order had only been placed a week ago and he figured with how much work Sorin did it would've taken him at least a month to complete it.

"That's amazing, thank you for your work. I suppose I'll be ready to head out in the morning." Ganondorf responded with a smile placing his hand on the smith's shoulder in thanks before turning to go back inside as Sorin returned to his own home. Once he had returned to his place beside Link his eyes fell to the bandaging that was wrapped around his wound and all of his thoughts began to blend together. Dark legends, minions, a conquering evil, what did it mean for the kingdom, what did it mean for Link and himself, the more he thought about it the more tired he became until he finally slipped into sleep surrendering his mind to the realm of dreams.

~X~

The sound of music was the first thing that came to him in his dreams, a slow almost sinister melody that become ever clearer the more it played until the sound boomed against him as if he was playing an organ. Second his touch came back feeling his hands dancing across keys, the feeling made it obvious that he was playing but it wasn't consciously. Lastly his sight came back showing him a grand ornate golden organ before him but the sound of a door opening made his hands stop as he slowly turned to see a man clad in green before the image flashed away.

When the white began to fade he could start making out shapes and color, a small creature like an imp floating before him with black and pale blue skin. Black shards of stone floated around it before locking onto the imp creating a surge of black, blue, and gold energy flood forth becoming a multi-armed beast that charged at him with an intent to kill and a wicked trident to do the job.

~X~

The end of Ganondorf's dream made him jump up ready to fight but there was nothing in the doctor's home that threatened, even his brother laid asleep beside him snoring like Kakarikan Boar. With a soft sigh he would sit back down rubbing his face as the sudden wake up left him still partially asleep. After a brief respite to collect his thoughts, Ganondorf rose to his feet again before collecting and sheathing his swords feeling the weight he had forgotten in that battle. His eyes then fell back to his brother and he couldn't help but smile soft before exiting the building to go gear up a horse from the stables. One in particular always stood out to him, a large black stallion easily capable of carrying him without losing it's speed. As he led the massive creature toward the road leading to Ordon he saw Sorin waiting at the gate for him with a letter pouch.

"I see you're ready for the trek, is there anything you want me to tell your mother or Link?" The smith slipped the pouch off and over Ganondorf before stroking the mane of the large steed he had chosen.

"Keep it simple, say I went to look for a salve to help him heal him." The teen replied making sure the pouch was secure before lifting himself onto the stallion's back.

"Understood, I hope to see your return soon Ganondorf, keep yourself safe." The Gerudo would nod to the man and take one last look over his village hoping for the best before turning toward the road and digging the spurs into the sides of the horse urging it to head off in a dash disappearing into the forest as the light of dawn began to break over the village.

However one shadow in particular, wore a Cheshire grin...


	3. I'm Going on an Adventure

**3\. I'm going on an Adventure**

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All was black as Link awoke floating in nothingness, everything felt still as if his nerves had become frozen. The first thing to reach him was sound, the sound of rushing wind. The second was touch, the feeling of his arms and legs raised in front of him like he was sinking into water. That realization shocked Link's body back to working order as he twisted his body looking below him as the dream scape flipped like a coin revealing a green forest below him just moments before he crashed into the canopy.

As Link fell he didn't feel a single branch but he could feel the foliage caress his skin as it caught him slowing his descent until he finally landed in a bush that felt like it was made of cotton. The plant would spring up retaining it's shape even after Link had fell onto it. The sounds of the trees and branches creaking overhead drew his gaze up revealing to him the trees had moved their limbs to catch him.

Link rubbed the back of his neck still feeling a bit jarred from the fall but his eyes scanned his surroundings finding himself deep in a thick forest with only a single path leading away from where he had fallen. With a quiet shrug he trudged into the depths of the woods, the ground almost felt like he had been walking down a slope and the light seemed to dim as he traveled farther until he finally came to an opening surrounded on all sides by towering trees that were impossibly huge blotting out the majority of light that glittered down from the sky.

With a single step into the clearing voices seemed to whisper around him and a single figure could be seen sitting in front of him. As he drew closer more details could be made out a woman with hot skin like red clay and clothed in garb similar to that of the Gerudo but in glittering red. Before her laid two other women, one clad in a flowing dress each layer made of a different shade of blue, her skin as fair as alabaster. The other woman was young and petite almost on the cusp of womanhood, as thin green clothing hung from her soft tanned skin leaving her midriff and legs mostly bare.

Once link reached roughly ten feet away from them he could see the long ears typical of a Hylian on the Gerudo-like woman twitch as she looked up from the other two and smiled huge before leaping the distance and hugging his waist tight and with a strength that bellied her appearance almost suffocating him with her power before she loosened her hold and looked up at him making him freeze, her eyes looked like perfect rubies as fire rippled behind them. Before he could think of how to react to her actions or her endowed breasts pressing into his lower torso her red painted lips would part and words like the heat of a hearth in the middle of winter reached his ears.

"Oni, Power is awake."

Not understanding what she meant he opened his mouth to speak but was silenced as she moved up to kiss his cheek and everything before his eyes was engulfed in flame pulling him from the dream and making him sit bolt up right in bed.

~X~

"OWW OWW GODDESSES DAMMIT TOO DAMN HOT!" The cursing drew Link's attention to the older man standing beside the bed sucking on his finger like the image of an infant. The longer Link watched him his mind became clearer finally recognizing him as the village's doctor, but why was he here in his room. As soon as the thought occurred to him his eyes raced around the room and he saw that he wasn't in his room he was in the doctor's home, shirtless, and wrapped.

"Oh... Link, I didn't mean to wake you, the fire on the soup flared and caught my hand," The doctor grinned embarrassed before sitting beside the youth looking him over with eyes that spoke of years of experience before nodding and returning to his feet to retrieve a bowl of soup before returning to Link with it. "Here, do you remember what happened? You were in pretty bad condition when you got here."

Link gingerly took the bowl and the smell was distinctive, Ordon Cheese and Pumpkin it was the doctor's specialty. To the Doctor's chagrin Link's stomach growled before he could even start eating as famished as he was. The blonde ate the creamy mixture like he hadn't eaten for days though to be true, that wasn't far from the truth. With the empty bowl in his lap Link took a deep breath feeling deeply satisfied as his energy came back.

"S-Sorry doc, it looked really good..." Link replied somewhat embarrassed by how he ate it but the doctor just smiled and shook his head. "I... remember a monster, it ambushed us... Ganondorf! Where is he!? Is he okay!?"

"Relax son your brother wasn't harmed, you protected him." The doctor quickly caught hold of Link's shoulders holding him steady as the outburst and the memories of what happened made pain bloom in his side as well as the back of his head forcing a pained hiss past Link's lips as he laid back down and his arms cradled his side. "You've been out cold for three days, the attack you took in his stead nearly ripped you in two, it's a miracle that blade missed your organs and spine after ripping through your mail. Not to mention the blow you took to your head."

As the pain slowly subsided Link looked up at the man partly in shock, he knew that he slept a lot but never for three days. "Th-thank you... For looking after me, I should get out of your bed."

"Nuh unh, not happening, I didn't let you sleep there so you could tear my handiwork open again." The doctor seemed to glare but it was hollow of anything more than a doctor's threat of health. He took the empty bowl from Link's lap before taking it to his kitchen to wash it. As the sound of water ran he became keenly aware that he had been in bed for three days... Without relieving himself.

Despite the protests from his wound Link slowly climbed to his feet and made his way down the hall to the bathroom. After a short amount of time Link noticed the sound of water had ended and with a shrug he finished his business before returning to the bed sitting up against the wall, the doctor seemed to be gone and while there was a brief space of time when Link thought it was strange but the thought quickly passed figuring that the doctor hadn't been by his side for the past 72 hours straight, right?

Shortly after that the door to the house opened drawing Link's attention, There stood his mother, beautifully wreathed in the golden light of the midday sun, as she slowly sat beside him and hugged around his chest laying her head on it like she was listening for his heart. As an embarrassed blush crept on Link's face he smiled and returned the hug his mother gave him, gently cradling her as he felt each breath holding back the faintest tremble. Link knew that the past few days had to be hard on her, he could see it; her hair hadn't been brushed, her clothes and skin had patches of dirt pressed into her skin by sweat. He had no doubt she had been working herself to the bone so she wouldn't let her mind settle on what had happened to him.

"I'm okay Ma, I'm sorry I worried you" While his words were sincere he knew that she had to reach the point of acceptance on her own. Her grip loosened just enough to to lean up and kiss his forehead smiling as her deep blue eyes glimmered with tears.

"Isn't that just precious." The familiar tenor of his teacher made Link's form go rigid as he inched away from his mother and glared behind her at Sorin as he stood in the open doorway and the doctor was a few paces ahead of him returning to his kitchen allowing for the group to have a moment to themselves.

"...Shut up..." Two words were all Link could manage at the sudden situation looking away from the man for a few moments feigning anger before looking back at each of them,

"Your body looks better guess your head still hasn't caught up." Sorin edged at Link teasing him like the days when he had been trained by the former knight.

"Boys." Malona's single word silenced both males and drew their attention as she looked between them with a stern look while the only thing Link could think was that he hadn't done anything.

"Y-yeah I'm feeling alright... Where's Ganondorf? The doc said he wasn't hurt, is he out hunting?" While the news that his brother hadn't been harmed in the confrontation he couldn't help but wonder where he was and the look that his mother shot Sorin didn't help much.

"Well... You see what happened was that I asked him to report to the King about what happened, hopefully with the journey on his mind he wouldn't dwell on you getting hurt." Sorin began to explain while Link watched him, the part about keeping Ganondorf busy made sense Goddesses know that while thinking wasn't his strong suit once something was stuck in his mind it was stuck there, for a very long time.

"Okay, why inform the King though?" The blonde couldn't help but be confused he knew that the monster was strange but it could have just been some new animal that had stumbled out of the forest. Link had heard of the Gorons, a race practically of living stone and of course the fish-man race of the Zoras.

"The truth is that what you fought isn't of our world, its called a Moblin, a member of the Goblin race devoted to the Demon King." Sorin's voice fell a few notches as he told Link of the truth behind the creature that had attacked him and his brother. "I asked Ganondorf to go with a letter of my approval so that I could stay here and defend the village from any more monsters that may appear."

"...Alright, with the village on watch there probably aren't any horses left to take out, can you pack me a bag for the journey on foot." The words out of Link's mouth, while slow to emerge, came out more as directions rather than a request while he slowly stood up straightening his posture his breath hitching as he felt the stitching in his side.

"No Link... You're in no shape to go anywhere, let alone to the kingdom on foot." Sorin stood before him and with a powerful hand on each shoulder slowly pushed him back down into a sitting position. Before Link could protest he saw the look of fear and sorrow on his mother's face and no longer put up any resistance. "Maybe when you're better you can go after Ganondorf if he isn't back yet, but that wound is nothing to sniff at Link, you need to heal."

"Yes sir..." The words begrudgingly hung on the air as Sorin stepped back and lifted a package off the floor that Link had failed to notice since he had awoken. The man set it on his lap and the weight was obvious, whatever was wrapped inside it was metal.

"Open it. Its a special order Ganondorf put in for you." As Sorin spoke Link's mother rose to her feet stroking his blonde hair back while he pulled at the string curious until it came loose. With a soft smile Malona would walk towards the door with Sorin a few paces behind her. "Your brother knew the worth of good iron, it's dangerous to go alone Link."

The blonde watched as his mother and Sorin left, knowing each of them had their own work to do, given it was the middle of the day. His gaze slowly shifted back down to the untied package as he moved the folds of thick paper shocked as he saw the gleaming black beneath. A sword and shield set made completely out of black iron, The style was tacky just like he expected of Ganondorf but touching the metal and feeling the weight of it made him feel closer to his brother as he unsheathed the blade looking at the black mirror.

At that moment memories of times the brothers had spent with Sorin in his forge came back to him. Ganondorf kept constantly asking about what metals were good for armor and weapons, specifically iron. Link's brother had always loved the metal due to it's dusky color but Sorin told him time and time again that iron was amazing for armor but poor for weapons due to it's stubborn make up, it was nearly impossible to keep sharp. However that also meant if you could forge a blade of iron it would take a lot of abuse to lose it's edge.

Link couldn't help but smile as he sheathed the blade again and with the sharp clink of the action he knew what he had to do. Moving quiet so he didn't alert the doctor he got on his boots and grabbed his tunic noticing the stitching that had been mended from the blow he took. However as he began to look for his chain-mail he couldn't find it, he slowly moved further into the house seeing if it was washed and hanging from blood or some other reason.

"Ahem, where do you think you're going." The voice of the doctor sounded from behind link in the hallway as he stared down the blonde. Link quickly moved to explain himself but the doctor shook his head and held up his hand. "Nope, Don't wanna hear it."

The older man's interruption had dashed Link's hopes as he looked down but at that time he saw that the doctor was holding his chain-mail in one hand and the iron sword and shield in the other. Although the doctor only glared for a few moments more before sighing and tossing the chain-mail at Link which he barely caught from the sudden surprise. "Doc?"

"Come with me," the doctor snapped before turning back down the hallway and the confused blonde followed without question more shocked than anything. "I've treated you and your brother since you were ankle-biters, whether you got hurt fighting each other or for one another, I patched you up."

The two reached the end of the hall with a wooden wall and a knapsack making Link further confused as the doctor picked up the sack and simply pushed the wall aside like a door revealing a cave carved into the earth leading a short ways into a larger open area. "I know that both of you would do anything to make sure the other was okay so I knew you would try to leave."

The man led Link over to a simple wooden chest and opened it pulling out a bottle of glowing blue liquid. "I used to be an adventure back in my time and that is the chain-mail I used, it's a bit longer than what you had but it keeps your junk safe if anything tries to cut you down there, drink this."

Link took the the bottle unsure of what the doctor had told him, he certainly didn't look the type to travel around Hyrule and he had never seen anything like the blue liquid before. Slowly he would loosen the cork before tiling the glass back against his lips, the liquid was gooey and cold on his tongue as the sickly sweet concoction moved down his throat but the effects were amazing as he felt his body practically gleaming with energy and the echoes of pain in his side were completely gone. The doctor unwrapped the gauze revealing bloody patches the further down the wrap went but as he reached skin, the stitching simply fell away and the wound had been completely healed as if by magic. "Wh-what was that?"

"It's called a potion, they're rather rare outside of Castle Town they take a certain hand to make and I've been saving that for an emergency, I think this counts." The doctor smiled at Link as he bundled up the bandages and Link slipped the chain-mail over his form, it felt slightly heavier but the cool metal felt good through his shirt, his tunic followed it before he put on his hat. The doctor then handed him the iron sword and shield which he fastened on his back before he also held out the knapsack he had picked up at the entrance to the cave. "Your bow and quiver inside, I prayed to Farore to allow it a great amount of space, keep the bottle too, it'll come in handy."

"Thanks Doc, for all of this really. I know my mother and Sorin want me to be safe but I can't just leave him out there alone." Link spoke to the doctor as the man lead him to a series of steps opposite the way they entered the cave which lead to another hidden entrance within the forest on the edge of the village.

"I understand Link and so will they, look after yourself ya hear? I don't wanna have to stitch you up again." The doctor's words made him grin as he watched the older man wave to him before shutting the secret entrance. The midday sun shone across his attire in spots from the leaves overhead remembering his dream bringing his gaze to the open palm of his left hand.

Power.

With a quiet farewell Link reached into the sack retrieving his bow and quiver securing them to his body before venturing into the woods while steering clear of the roads so he didn't come across the patrol.

After a few hours along the road he saw smoke rising in the distance, no doubt it was Ordon though a fire in the early days of summer seemed out of place, then another stream of smoke rose into the sky.

"Great... Well at least this journey won't be boring." Renewing his pace, Link pushed himself harder as he drew an arrow from his quiver to his bow ready to fire as he reached the hill overlooking the village of Ordon.

One house had already began to catch fire, two arrows had stuck into the roof, one patch of flame noticeably bigger than the other as columns of black smoke rose up into the darkening sky. A practical horde of small monsters had swarmed into the village waving around clubs as the towns people run into the village hall. A few warriors were fighting them back at the doors so that the villagers could get safe before they shut the large steel doors.

Link had been to Ordon a number of times to trade and even just passing through to the north, he knew that door could withstand their clubs with no problem. From his perch on the hill he could make out their details in the light while the trees gave him stealth. They were roughly two feet tall and dressed in crude clothing while something like a frier's hat sat lopsided upon their heads, their skin was sickly green and their eyes glowed red.

With an annoyed glance he took in their numbers before looking to the north, towards his goal, he knew that the warriors of Ordon were certainly strong enough to deal with the threat he began to wonder if they could do it before the village burned.

"Dammit..." While readying his bow he would take an arrow and draw it back while taking aim at the goblin archer that had taken aim at the smoking building and was ready to fire once more. Before it could fire its arrow, Link fired his and with a sick sound the creature fell to the ground and as it's hand went slack it's arrow instead shot the next monster next to it catching it on fire and much to Link's surprise burning it to ash in a matter of seconds followed by it's comrade roughly a minute later as its body burst into a black cloud.

As Link watched the odd deaths of the monsters he tilted his head confused by the way they died, however the sharp whistle of an arrow cutting through the air brought him out of his thoughts quickly rolling down the side of the hill in time to miss the arrow as it stuck into a tree above him with a solid thunk. On his way down he drew another arrow taking aim at the monster that had fired on him firing again watching as his arrow slid deep into the goblin's bow arm functionally severing the tendons and muscles within making the arm fall limp.

With a smirk Link rolled a short ways along the ground as he reached the end of the slope and reached into his quiver again to ready another arrow before finishing the screaming monster, a disturbing gargle filling the air as it fell to the ground. The sound brought a shiver along Link's spine as he moved close to the wall of the building he had landed by, if his memory was correct it belonged to the village's blacksmith family that also served as the village's protection. That realization brought some ease to him knowing that the entirety of the building had been built of stone and the wooden roof was to keep the stone from eroding.

The sounds of coming feet splashing through the nearby river that ran through the forest made him still his breath and put away his bow. From the sounds he could tell that there were at least four and he couldn't shoot them all before becoming overrun. Reaching around to his back Link would grasp the handles of the weapons his brother had given him before taking a deep breath and drew them as the other monsters looked at the spot of blood on the ground that his first kill had created. Each of them were armed with clubs while one held a crude stone cleaver, they shouldn't be a match against hard iron.

As they crowded the spot of blood Link rushed out of cover and leaped toward them bringing down the black sword with all his force splitting the goblin in half that had been facing away from him before bursting into black smoke. The other monsters all jumped back out of fear as they scrambled to regain their posture, the one to Link's right made it's attack first, though it met Link's black shield with a resolute clang, allowing Link to push into the goblin and throw it onto it's back before swinging his blade across from the right to the left in a sweeping arc. The axe wielding goblin jumped back but the one on the left was still shaken from his initial attack and Link's follow up sweep had cleaved the monster's head from its shoulders creating another poof of black smoke.

The goblin with the axe seemed the most experienced as it reacted quickly to Link's sweep and rushed forward towards him and swung the axe hard, aimed to slice through Link's abdomen, however his reflexes were one thing that Link prided himself in and as the goblin moved in he crouched low bending his legs before springing up into the air above the goblin narrowly missing its axe with a back flip. Following the evasion Link would rush the monster impaling it on his black sword and wrench the blade out to the side showering the last remaining monster with the blood of its ilk before it burst into smoke like the others. Using the blood as a momentary distraction for the last monster, Link would spring into the air once more as he closed the distance in an instant with a wicked downward slash that traveled from the goblin's right shoulder and down through the left side of its stomach.

A deep breath filled the blondes chest as he looked at his black sword, while it didn't look different in hue it dripped black ichor into the grass. "Ganondorf made a good call with these."

The sound of an anguished man snapped Link back to attention as he looked away from the wicked black sheen, from where he was it had to have come from the village hall. Link started at a run rushing through the shallow river passing by a few homes whose doors were battered and maimed but still holding strong, the bridge across was just a head and the roof of the hall had come into view however the sight he came around to brought him to a halt. At least eight of the monsters were trying to fight the warriors that were guarding the steel door and two more sat upon a large pig-like creature that he recognized as a Bulbo one of the desert hogs. It seemed one had managed a clean blow, out of the three warriors, one laid on the ground clutching his leg as blood spilled out from his calf.

The two on top of the pig were rocking and making snickering noises as if they were laughing at the man, the thought alone brought an annoyed anger through Link, he quickly moved his sword into his other hand that wore his shield before reaching into the water at his feet and finding a decently sized rock.

He took aim and chucked it straight at the back of the head of the monster that was holding the reigns of the pig with a sharp crack. Every sound in the area had come to a stop as the creature fell off the pig and burst into smoke. The momentary distraction allowed the warriors to kill one goblin each even the injured one managing to impale the closest one with his spear. The brought the tally down to 5 on the ground and one on the Bulbo that had now turned and began to run away for the exit of the town. "Damn... Smart pig."

Rather than taking the chance of reinforcements, Link quickly sheathed his sword before grabbing his bow and drawing an arrow taut and taking aim at the creature that was bouncing atop the pig's hindquarters grabbing desperately so it wouldn't fall off. The sharp twang of his bow string was followed by the squelch of flesh being pierced and the goblin had gone limp shortly before it too burst into a cloud of black smoke. However Link's grin didn't last as he heard another twang and from his left one of the creatures had fired on him, luckily he had time to turn just enough so that the arrow sliced through the skin of left shoulder, deep enough to make his blood flow freely but not enough to cripple him.

The sounds of battle had continued as Link put away his bow and redrew his sword before climbing out of the river and onto the bank startling the monster as it fumbled to ready another arrow, however Link was slightly quicker, with a swift lunge he sliced straight through the bow before his blade met the creatures chest and threw it back into the group of four tripping them up long enough for the two standing warriors to end another goblin each leaving two left that stood surrounded with Link at their back and two spear men ahead of them. Their aggression had drain as they looked between themselves and their opposition seemingly trying to decide if they should run away. However the warriors didn't plan to let them get away as they both charged forward driving their spears through the goblins.

As they both burst into smoke Link sighed in relief putting away his sword and shield before leaning back into the support post that held up the bridge getting a moment to catch his breath, needless to say he wasn't used to dealing with battles like this where it was kill or be killed.

"Link? What are you doing here?" The familiar voice came from one of the warriors, while Link couldn't remember his name his face he instantly recognized, he had been the guard who stood at the end of the road leading between Ordon and Kokiri.

"I... I'm following my brother, he went to the castle a few days ago." The words quickly came out as he thought about what he should or shouldn't say, no doubt Ganondorf had come through this area but whether or not he had spoken to anyone was beyond him.

"Yes that's correct, three days ago just past dawn, he managed to get through the forest before that damned door appeared." The warrior seemed noticeably shaken, even his pike wavering slightly from is tightened grip.

"What door? And what happened here with those creatures?" Link couldn't understand how a group of those monsters could show up so quickly when only one had managed to reach Kokiri.

"On the road to the north... The day after your brother left an ornate door appeared in the middle of the road, the handle won't turn and anyone who has tried to walk past it and continue along the road has just ended up back here at the village." anguish seemed to shake the man as he feared for the village, with these attacks coming at random times and random enemies each time he understood why he was scared. Though his name drifted at the corner's of Link's mind he reached out to pat the man's shoulder.

"Don't worry, Ordon is strong if nothing else. You have your guardian spirit and the legend of your hero. In your darkest times he will return to protect Ordon right?" "Having been through the village enough times through out his life, Link has heard every folk tale the village had and knew they held special reverence for an ancient hero of Hyrule who hailed from Ordon. The warrior visibly relaxed as he took in Link's words before he stood up right.

"You're right Link, thank you, I'll send a fresh wagon full of meat and produce to your mother in Kokiri for aiding in the defense of Ordon." His attitude had jumped admirably but the news made his face fall as he heard the metal doors creaking open and the villagers slowly started to emerge taking in the damage that had been done to the town.

"Th-that won't be necessary I was just trying to help, no need to give me anything for it-"

"NONESENSE!" The sudden booming voice almost made Link jump as a large somewhat round man came over to them, Link recognized him as the mayor having seen him working through out the years his hairline had slowly receded. As the large man reached them he slapped Link on the back as he wore a large grin. "You helped defend our homes Link, that's more than could ever be asked of a bystander as our roads were overrun by a horde of monsters. We WILL send thanks to your home as soon as possible."

"Thanks... that's... great" Link breathed out as a sigh before looking at the ground while the two men went to help the villagers. The blonde rubbed his face slightly annoyed that he was gonna be busted so fast but he didn't regret helping them, unbeknownst to him though, the villagers stole glances at him while whispering under the breath. After a few more seconds and the villagers had dispersed through the village to assess the damage he turned and walked across the bridge and toward the road to the north, on his right he saw the large building that served as a community general store and sat on the edge of a large pond that was created by the river before continuing down stream.

As he reached where was considered to be the entrance to the village the shrine of the hero came into view, a house that looked older than time carved from the very tree it sat upon. A ladder lead up to a platform filled with offerings and gifts to their hero, while Link would've expected it to have fallen into ruins by now he figured the village kept it up in honor. The building held a certain sense of wonder about it as he looked at the pale wooden frame of it, figuring it couldn't hurt anything he dug into his pouch for a rupee and tossed it up onto the shrine asking for safe passage. However as soon as he heard the telltale ching of the rupee landing a wind blew over him almost taking off his cap as it made him shiver. The blonde stared at the shrine for a brief moment before continuing along the road. "You don't have to be a dick about it ya know..."


	4. Screw the Key

**4\. Screw the Key**

* * *

A short ways down the path the road from Ordon widened into the rough shape of a circle and there at the other end stood the door that they had spoken of, beyond it the road seemed to repeat the trend as another rough circle before thinning out into the path that laid ahead. On the eastern edge of the road a wrecked wagon laid on its side, the wood was marred with gashes and a fair amount of it had broken and as Link began to wonder what had caused the damage his eyes caught sight of a stone weapon dug deep into the wood just, another stone cleaver. The sight made him shake his head silently hoping the people made it to the village safely after being attacked.

Rather than messing with the door or the overturned wagon Link continued on along the path to see what he warrior had meant about ending up turned back around towards the village, it was now roughly noon and he shouldn't have any problems with getting lost in the dark. As he continued along the path he kept a hand on his sword so he could react if something tried to ambush him, every few minutes the bushes would rustle pulling his gaze into the woods and a few times he would even hear what sounded like sticks knocking against each other. Deciding it would be in his best interest not to intrude on the spirits of the forest he stayed on the middle of the road allowing the spirits to do as they would.

Time seemed to go on forever but he never left the woods, he never even saw the spring that was at the end of the path, finally he eventually reached a point where the path widened out into the shape of a rough circle...

"Okay... This is bullshit..." Link could feel his eye twitch as he stamped his feet with each step, when he reached the door he looked it over closely analyzing whatever details it had. On the side that faced Link and the path that had somehow brought him back there was barely anything but an ornate filigree of feather patterns ringing the edge of the door while the door knob itself seemed to be crafted out of a smooth, opaque, red, crystal, on the other side facing Ordon however was a rather detailed image of what looked like a mansion with twin towers standing at it's front most corners, the odd thing was that nearly all of the image was faded except for the details of the western tower.

With nothing better to do than scratch his head Link took a step back from the door and tried to see if he could make out the bigger picture but the more he looked at it the more confused he felt. With an aggravated sigh he pulled off his hat and ran his fingers through his blonde hair as he walked over to the wagon and sat back against the wreckage.

"I don't have time for this, I've gotta reach Ganondorf. I can't go back with my tail between my legs!" Out of frustration he threw his head back against the wood and winced feeling the pain, however as his vision swam he could see something in the distance, a tower standing high over the trees, the stone looked older than old and a number of windows were closed with rotten shutters fallen and decayed, the more that Link stared at it the more familiar it looked until he realized that the tower was of the same design as the one on the door.

"Well I've got nothing better to do... May as well see if there's something there to help get out of here." While the words were true enough Link froze just as soon as he had stood up, chances are the woods would turn him back even quicker than the 'straight' road had. Turning around he would heave the wreckage of the wagon out of the way checking for anything he could use to possibly keep him from getting lost and that is when he found it, a large coil of rope. Link had known from his own trips to and from Ordon that most travel wagons kept rope to secure their shipments and now he had a way to mark his way through the woods.

Retrieving his bow from the sack, Link then pulled an arrow from his quiver before tying the end of the rope just behind the fetching. Once he was sure that the rope was clear and tight he would take aim and draw the bow taut aiming for one of the lower windows of the tower that still had it's shutters before letting it fly, the whistle seemed to echo over the trees until he saw the shutter suddenly swing back and forth signaling his arrow had hit its mark. With the path set he would put away the bow before drawing his sword and shield and threading the rope through the handle of the shield, this way he could be ready to attack or defend without losing the rope and risk falling prey to the woods once more.

As Link ventured into the woods he took care to keep his guard up and survey his surroundings, as he grew up he heard the warnings given to anyone who traveled this path to never venture into the woods or else they'd be fated to become a bone-kin such as a Stalfos or Skull Child. The stories were haunting and the idea of being stuck lost forever until you become nothing more than a wandering skeleton shook him deeply. It was then that he heard that same rattling once more that he had heard on the road, like sticks knocking together but this time it was growing louder like something was approaching him...

While Link readied his shield and sword what happened he couldn't have prepared for, what looked like a child in a faded brown tunic with a wide brim hat was charging towards him and promptly jumped onto his shield's top edge before glaring down at him with a black featureless face, glowing eyes, and a wide mouth.

"What's with the rope!? You know how boring that makes playing pranks when you people can't get lost!?" The child-like being stared at him mad huffing as it breathed almost seeming to shake in rage and Link could hear the shivering sound of sticks which he now understood had been the Skull Child playing with him.

"Look, I'm trying to get through Faron Woods to catch up to my brother, I don't mean any ill will, I'm sorry" The stories of these beings didn't end at eternal damnation some even said that the bone-kin could control powerful dark magics and that was something he couldn't afford to fight against. However the longer the Skull Kid glared at him the more its anger seemed to drain until it finally just stared at him like it was recognizing something about him.

"Hm... Do you know how to play an Ocarina by chance? I made a friend a couple of years ago that looked a lot like you and he had a shiny blue Ocarina." The child sat upon his shield staring at him even more intently as its hands began to rummage through its clothing searching for something.

"N-no I can't play any kind of instrument, I've never actually heard of an Ocarina." Link watched the child as it continued to look through it's clothing.

"This! Is an Ocarina." the child proclaimed as it pulled the instrument from it's clothing it was a light brown tone with a leaf green stripe around the mouth piece, over all he would compare it to a strange type of flute. After allowing Link to look it over the Skull Kid placed the mouth piece to it's lips before smoothly blowing out a low toned note before giggling, the sound itself seemed to echo around him like wind.

"It's interesting, I've never seen anything quite like it." Link watched as the child became engrossed with the instrument continuing to blow three more notes, each one followed by the same eerie giggle. After the fourth time the Skull Kid looked up at Link and smiled before putting the Ocarina away and hopping off his shield only to float before him in midair.

"Well... You seem alright so I'll let you go this time, don't tell anyone I was nice to you." The Skull Kid grinned wide before floating off into the woods vanishing after moving behind a tree.

"Strange does not begin to describe what just happened..." Link muttered under his breath before continuing through the trees along the path of the rope. Soon he could even see the stone through the trees as he hurried a bit faster, as he emerged from the dense foliage he found himself standing at the foot of the massive tower. He slowly circled around it until he found the base of the northern side seemed to have fallen apart leaving a large opening, while the entirety of the building didn't look safe there wasn't much Link could do if he wanted to continue on.

While keeping his steps light he would venture inside of the structure as he saw the winding series of steps that climbed upwards. Link began his climb taking each step gingerly until he was confident they wouldn't give and send him falling to his death, every few steps he would cross a broken one and they seemed to get worse as he went on. At roughly a third of the way up he reached a gap too far to step over so his only choice would be to jump, his blue eyes looked deep down past the steps seeing he was good 30 feet up already if this went bad it wouldn't end well. He could always turn back but then what would all the effort have been for...

Taking a deep breath Link would bend his legs getting ready before leaning into the jump as he crossed the gap and kept moving letting his agility do the thinking for him. He ascended even quicker, closing gaps and making leaps that he wouldn't have considered before but now he felt at ease. Now he had finally reach the top of the stairs where a large wooden door stood but as he moved to push it open...

He found that it was locked.

"No... Oh hell no!" With a rough shove from his iron shield Link would barge through the rotten door splintering it as it burst apart while filling the room before him with dust. The light that came in from the windows cast beams through the dust as Link waved the shield through the dense air trying to clear some of it so that he could see once again. As the dust was settling he was able to make out shapes in the dusky light, mainly that of a man leaning back against the wall in a slumped position although as the air finally became clear he could see that it was a body long dead and ravaged by time. The clothing on its body had been torn and the skin had long since rotted away to leave behind white bone, a forgotten rapier laid at his feet along with tattered maps and charts while the hilt of a deep red blade was buried through his chest up to the hilt which was probably what kept him held up.

The very notion that someone had been run through and pinned upright made him feel a bit unnerved as Link moved closer looking around to see what the man had been doing there and that was when a slight twinkle caught his attention, hanging just beside the red sword was a golden chain with what looked like a crystal disc hanging from the other end.

"A monocle?... Well I hope you had a good life before you came here..." Link mused silently as he gently lifted the chain slipping the anchor off of the pocket on his shirt having no intention of stealing it but curious of it regardless. As he began to turn it between his fingers the crystal had an off blue tone to it while the chain seemed completely devoid of sound at all. It was then Link could hear the faint creaking of the tower as the wind blew and when he felt it it was like he could have been standing out in a field rather than inside of the tower. Holding back the urge to shiver, the sound of the wind seemed to change and another faint rhythm joined but he couldn't make it out. The wind continued to shift and waver becoming more and more abstract until he realized they had become whispers and finally one came through clear.

~Wear it...~

Unsure if it was just his mind playing tricks on him or if another Skull Child had come around Link rose the crystal to his eye as the other sound grew louder almost like a drum beat but more crass, like metal hitting stone. At first nothing looked any different until he was able to focus through the crystal and now see the ghost of the impaled man as a spirit wreathed in blue and seemingly as whole as he had been when he died. Now that he was in focus Link could see his details much clearer he had been dressed to explore and he had a great mustache almost over exaggerated. However the man's anxious demeanor worried him, he was dead after all.

~Oh thank goodness, you need to ready your sword my boy, the Stalfos are coming!~ The words instantly froze Link to the bone as he now realized that sound was the rhythm of greaves climbing the stone stairwell. Almost on instinct Link drew his blade and turned toward the door just in time to deflect a sword thrown at him by one of the undead beings, the force of the throw knocked him back into the wall beside the skeleton and the ghost as Link winced but got a look at both the weapon and foe that had come to be before him. The hilt and handle of the blade was the same as that of the one that stuck into the body but now Link could see that the blade was roughly four feet long with a crimson hue as it waved back and forth like a serpent. His focus on the weapon was broken however as a skeletal hand grabbed the handle and pulled it back over to the Stalfos and the hand reconnected at its wrist.

~Fresh meat... It's been a long time since I had a fight...~ The skeleton's eyes glowered a deep orange and red as a deep grinding noise accompanied its voice, while it's upper body was mostly a bare skeleton besides the gauntlets worn on its forearms, its lower body was clad in faded teal pants and red greaves. It slowly began to step forward and Link matched its movements so that he could move away from the wall and get some breathing room. ~Try not to die too fast...~

The taunts were beginning to annoy Link now as he glared at the skeleton, the Stalfos moved first lunging forward with a stab but Link quickly raised his shield to deflect the blade to the side before swinging the edge of the shield down into its arm hoping to break the bones and disarm it.

It worked... Kinda...

As the blade and forearm went rolling away and Link moved to return the attack and stab into the Stalfos's eye socket his blade met with a screeching ring as both the blade and hand he had broken away floated in the air before him. With a gravelly laugh the skeleton would seem to reach for the arm with the one Link had broken and before his eyes the bone melded back together seamlessly.

~Young man Stalfos are beings of dark magic, you cannot harm them by breaking them apart.~ The ghosts words echoed around him and earned another laugh from the skeleton as it twirled the blade in its hand seemingly to test the reconnection.

"Unless you have any better ideas I can't do anything I don't know any magic!" Link barked at the ghost as he narrowly missed another lunge from the Stalfos rolling along the dust laden stone. The ghost seemed to follow Link hovering beside him as it thought and stared at the skeleton, Link rolled his eyes as the ghost left him high and dry to figure out the problem. Before Link could regain his footing however the Stalfos leaped through the air while bringing its blade down towards Link pinning him in a crouch as the blade rang out against the iron of his shield while the ghost was now positioned slightly behind the Stalfos.

~Aha! I have found its weak spot!~ the ghost proclaimed which made the Stalfos falter in its attack letting up on Link just enough for him to bat the sword to the side, roll a few feet away and climbing to a standing position. The ghost quickly hovered over to his side while the Stalfos watched it, the blade in its grip almost seeming to shudder. ~There on the back of its neck is a black gem, if you break that the dark spirit may disperse.~

~SILENCE WISP!~ The gravel voice of the Stalfos rang out in rage as it brought back its arm and hurled the crimson blade at the ghost, without thinking Link instantly moved to guard the ghost. As the blade struck and rang off his shield the force alone threw Link back into the wall with enough force to knock the air air out of him. Although a small glimmer of gold would begin to glow on the back of his left hand.

~...Young man why would you try to protect me? I am already dead.~ The ghost watched Link as he heaved and rose to his feet again watching as the Stalfos fumed and glared at the both of them.

"My body just moved on its own..." There was nothing more that Link could think of to explain why he had done it, the spirit couldn't be killed again so he seemed to have thrown himself into harm's way for naught, this do gooder thing is such a drag.

~Too bad that little hint won't help you!~ With its blade regained the skeleton would charge Link raising the blade high as Link tried to bring up his shield up to block the blow but the strength behind the Stalfos knocked the shield from his grasp sending it skittering over the stone floor. The skeleton prepared to strike once more as the sound of the wind around Link grew even more and in an instant things had changed.

Link now stood behind the Stalfos with its blade held frozen while its head slowly turned to the side confused, it was staring at the spot where Link had once been. While confused in his own right the blonde had to take this chance while he had it and quickly brought up his blade before driving it through the black crystal right where the ghost had said, the instant the crystal cracked the skeleton fell to the ground in lifeless pieces.

~By Farore...~ The ghost stared at him in awe, Link didn't understand until he looked down at his hands, in his normal sight nothing was out of place but to the eye looking through the monocle Link's body was cloaked in a green aura. Albeit devoid of a golden mark.

"What is this?... It's cool like a spring wind..." Link mused quietly unintentionally asking the ghost as it studied him.

~I believe this is Wind magic, the building we are in used to be the Forest Temple of old, men and Kokiri alike would come to deliver their prayers and offerings, but it has long since fallen into ruin and disrepair to the point ghosts have taken over the very state of the structure. Only those with the All Seeing Eye can explore it and that is what you now have in your possession and what I came in search for...~ The information was surprising as Link thought over everything the ghost had said even though its excitement drained toward the end as it seemed to come to realize its own passing. ~Either way, I believe you have a great reserve of magical potential if the old spirits awakened their magic within you, Wind magic is supposed to allow you the ability to teleport although its can only be used with specific points you know by heart, like home or a business.~

"Thank you... As far as I know I've never shown any magical ability before and unless I'm about to die again this ability seems less useful than others could be now." While Link had no intention of being rude his dismissal of this new talent seemed to silence the ghost as it simply stared at him. "What did you mean that this Eye was needed to explore it?"

~...Simply put, the temple has become stuck in flux between this world and the next and the All Seeing Eye imparts a fraction of the next world into the wearer so they may traverse the temple. The legends I've found of it say that the clerics who were trying to make it and venture in to purify the spirits died before they could go on.~ The stories of the temple easily made Link feel uneasy, the majority of the temple could easily be considered the after-life. The glow had long since passed but as Link took a step he faltered and fell to his knee gasping as the monocle came loose and hung from tunic. Even without wearing it, Link could still hear the ghost. ~Young man you should rest for a moment, you just used magic for the first time, high-tier magic at that. Also if you plan to try and liberate the temple from the dead may I accompany you? I spent most of my life trying to explore it and died in my pursuit, I believe my very presence is tied to the All Seeing Eye now.~

"I had no plans of freeing a decrepit temple from the hands of ghosts and spirits, but its in my way. You helped me so I don't see any problem with you coming with me..." The blonde answered the ghostly voice that seemed to hover around him as he put away his sword feeling safe for the time being. From where he sat he could see out over all of the Ordon province, even seeing his own village far in the distance as well as the great mountain range of Ordon that seemed to rise around the province.

"Huh... Kinda looks like a goat without horns..." Link thought as he saw the mountain range from the new point of view but shrugged as he stood and retrieved his shield from the floor before setting it onto his back once more. "Alright lets get going."

During the trip back down the tower Link kept the Monocle fastened to his tunic rather than wearing it so that if anymore spirits were floating about they wouldn't interrupt his descent. Going down seemed far quicker and and simpler than climbing the tower but he knew it was because of the method of movement rather than any real difficulty. Upon reaching the base Link climbed out of the hole that he had entered through and now that he felt safe he pulled out the monocle setting it back on his eye before looking back at the door which made him stare in awe, a massive building now stood joined to the tower, the entirety of it seemed to be a sickly green color the shifted and flowed like an undead wind having captured the building.

"That thing is massive..." The words seemed to fall past Link's lips as he slowly shook his head and touched the southern wall, it was cold like wind but felt as solid as stone now that he could see it, but a sickly essence seemed to stick to his hand like algae as he pulled his hand back, it slowly disappeared as if it was ash that had covered his fingers. With a slight shrug link kept his hand on the building as he walked along the wall knowing it would lead him back to the road where he had started from, and if he was lucky the Skull Kid wouldn't find him again.

Like his trek there the hike back to the road went quick and smooth with a guide, as he stepped down onto the road he could see the circular part of the road functioned like a garden for the temple as spectral statues lined the clearing and two pillars near the door held a roof. The most noticeable change he found however is that the door had a second spectral knob above the first and now the design on the door was all glowing brightly.

~Interesting, this is the road into Ordon if I remember correctly... The temple has moved and its flux has distorted the area the temple used to be located deep in Faron woods to the East, The Monkey Temple in the West was it's sister temple.~ The ghost seemed to float about the area observing everything like it was the first time he had ever seen which Link realized may be the case.

"Yeah, I need it to go back so that I can reach Hyrule." Link muttered slightly under his breath as the ghost continued to research the area, with a sigh Link grasped the green knob and pushed open the door however once it was open he was met with a distorted roar as black winds blew from within the temple nearly knocking Link onto his back. "Wh-what the hell was that?"

~I believe that is the dark spirit that has come to call this place home young man, you must vanquish it to release the hold on the temple.~ The ghost sounded so matter of fact even as it hid behind one of the pillars watching Link as he readied his bow with an arrow before entering the haunted temple.

Beyond the entrance laid a long hallway wouldn't have made him take a second glance. If it wasn't for the fact that the entire hallway twisted with the opposite side of the hallway being upside down. Link took a look at the hallway and grumbled under his breath before slowly beginning to walk forward, despite the look of the hallway as Link walked forward he soon found himself walking along the wall and even the ceiling before reaching the door on the other side. The whole ordeal was seeming to become more trouble than it was worth as Link opened the door which open into the grand foyer, although it was upside down.

The massive room had pillars supporting the roof and a diverging staircase that lead up to massive doors on the other side of the room that were engulfed in spectral black flames. The stair case also split at the door going up to a another floor which he assumed lead to the eastern and western wings. However Link was at a loss, he had no way to even go into the room, the doorway he had opened was a sheer drop towards the room's ceiling at least twenty to thirty feet down. The more he looked at the drop though he realized that it wasn't a straight fall, the walls were sloped, he could probably make it if he had something to go down on and then he had an idea. After putting away his bow and arrow Link retrieved his shield and knelt down setting the shield face down on the edge before climbing onto it in a low crouched position.

~Young man what by chance are you doing?...~ The ghost inquired just before Link leaned forward and fell. The shield sparked and screeched as it slid down the steep stone incline until it came skidding across the ceiling aimed straight for the falling curtain of fire.

"cracpcrapcrapcrap!" Link started to panic seeing the flames rushing at him and quickly rolled with the shield letting him roll across the smooth stone and stop his momentum before he crashed into the black torrent. "Waaaaay too close..."

Link sighed and began to breath heavy as he rose to his feet and returned his shield to his back, from here he could see the floor of the room quiet well, it was ornate and decorated with red velvet while the center of the room held a small enclave with four torch holders but he wasn't surprised that none of them were lit. From where he was now the only paths left to take were to the east and west wings of the building and since he had already been to the western tower he turned to the left and went towards the path that would lead to the eastern tower.

Once he had entered the hallway, twisted as it was, it felt less daunting than being in the grand foyer, the walls were decorated in old torn portraits with ornate golden frames but Link couldn't begin to wonder what once filled them, along the walls were statues like those that were outside but they seemed more vibrant and detailed, like they would come alive at any moment. It was then that Link felt a shiver and quickly drew his sword and shield, a blue flame floated in the middle of the hallway slowly swinging back and forth before stopping mid swing. Link focused on it through the Eye and it's form became clear as a shadow wrapped in white cloth as blue flame emerged from within, before Link could do anything it rushed into one of the statues coming to life as a Wolfos howling out as it leaped toward him trying to slash through Link with its massive claws.

Judging by the weight of the stone he knew it wouldn't be a good idea to block the attack or risk getting pinned under the stone wolf, Link tucked down into a ball and kicked off the floor to roll forward and under the beast before turning and cleaving into the stone with the blade of black iron. The statue almost seemed to shatter around where his blow landed and cracks quickly spidered out making the Wolfos crumble leaving the blue ghost to stare at him before swiftly sinking down into the ceiling and disappearing.

~Astounding... That was one of the four Poe sisters they're said to have inhabited this temple even before the other world took hold.~ The ghost hovered behind one of the statues having watched the short battle between the Poe and Link. While he would've been otherwise annoyed at the ghost he figured another spirit was the only thing that could hurt him. Link shrugged off the encounter figuring he had to deal with it at least three more times as he continued down the hallway to find a rotten hole in the floor, however there wasn't a way back up to the floor he was on so he would move around it slowly making sure not to fall.

A bit further down the hall Link realized that the the building was now right side up again after the twisting hall and to make matters better he reached the door that he assumed would lead him into the other tower however as he turned the knob on the door he felt a familiar anger within the pit of his stomach.

"ANOTHER LOCKED DOOR!?" Reacting in rage, Link reached back to grab a hold of his shield before bringing it down hard on the knob smashing it off and from the thunking sound on the other side it seemed like the entire knob and lock had just fallen out of the door. "My shield functions as a skeleton key... Imagine that..."

With his rage now satisfied Link kicked at the door and it swung open easily revealing the steps of the tower just as he had thought, he put away his shield and readied his bow before continuing up the steps. While this tower was far less ruined than the first it had so little light for him to scout ahead as he slowly climbed up reaching the door that probably lead into another room like the one that he had fought the Stalfos in, however the door was already open. Moving even slower Link would pull the string taut with an arrow aiming ahead as another Stalfos came into view, this one seemed to be looking out the window towards the north like a lookout. Rather than taking the chance of having to fight another one, Link leveled his bow and fired at the black crystal shattering it with a single arrow causing the bones to fall in a heap.

~Good show young man, far more efficient than battling it head to head with a sword.~ The ghost proclaimed however to Link he couldn't shake the faintest sense that he was being mocked for choosing not to fight it head on. Rather than pushing the subject he entered the room and recovered the arrow before putting away both it and his bow as he started to inspect the room.

Within the room Link found that it was far more furnished than its twin to the west, a large table and chair sat against one wall and had dozens of maps on it but only one seemed to glow like the outside of the temple, as he looked it over he realized it was the map of the temple and from what he could tell it was accurate to the current twisted layout, it even had a basement. While Link analyzed the map the ghost poured over the other charts finding that most of them predated this era by many years, even to the point where the Goron's springs used to be Zora's Domain. Once Link was finished reading the map he rolled it up and tucked it into his tunic but as he did he noticed a crystal on the wall where the door was, it seemed to be clear but it held a yellow glow within, out of curiosity Link touched the crystal and it seemed to respond.

While Link jerked his hand away it was too late, the whole tower began to rumble and as Link looked out the window the whole world looked like it was starting to turn and now he realized that it wasn't the world it was the tower that was beginning to turn. Link ran to the wall and braced himself as it hit the ground phasing through it, gravity however still held onto Link pulling him down to the ceiling once the tower had stopped moving and the tower was upside down to but Link was the only thing that had fallen to the ceiling, everything else all stayed where it was.

All Link could do was glare at the ceiling as the annoyance of his situation set in, he was inside of a damn puzzle box. With an aggravated growl he would rise to his feet before going over to the doorway to climb through it now that it was higher on the wall, the stair case didn't seem as bad he just walked on the underside of the steps to reach the door to the hallway he had came through earlier. Although as he climbed through he found that the hallway was no longer twisted, touching the crystal seemed to have returned the tower to the same alignment as the rest of the temple.

"I guess I've gotta return the temple to the way it was... Great..." Link mused aloud as he began to travel back down the hallway until he saw the hole from before but this time the hole in the floor was above him. It would be another way for him to go rather then ending up back at the grand foyer, After looking around the hole he took notice of one statue at the edge of it in particular, it was a very aggressive species of plant called a Deku Baba but it was long enough that Link could easily jump to reach it and climb through the hole. Once he had a good enough grasp he would pull himself up using the leaves of the plant for hand and foot holds until he could pull himself up onto the ceiling of the first floor.

From here Link could move down along the hallway until he came to a fork, straight a head he could see the hall starting to twist, but to his left there were steps leading up to a room that would be under the grand foyer. Link turned to go up the slope but he saw the ghostly light reflecting off of chains that barred the door shut with a massive lock on it. Rather than bothering trying to break through the chains Link just shook his head continued down towards the twisting hallway.

Almost as soon as the hallway started to twist a strong smell filled the air making Link cough as the skunky smell filled his head, he was starting to feel like he may throw up but a head of him he saw a green flame and as he focused on it it came into view, another pow but this one was wreathed in green flame as it just floated there so at peace while holding something that looked like a long glass pipe with a wide bowl at the end of it. After seeing it Link realized the smoke was coming from the Poe and it had to have been poison with the way it was making him feel.

As Link drew his sword the Poe looked at him and just waved as it slowly sunk into the floor leaving behind the pipe, the majority of the smoke blew out in seconds while the scent only continued to come from the pipe. With a deep sense of disgust Link picked it up keeping it as far from his face as he could before continuing down the hallway holding his stomach. The end of the hallway sat just a bit further and like the second tower, the end of the hall had another crystal with a yellow glow. Link glared at it slightly before taking a deep breath and touching it, just as before the temple started to shake before it began to turn though it was far less extreme as the hallway became aligned with the rest of the temple.

The sick feeling was now starting to wane as he stood up again before returning down the hallway to the fork he had reached before and stepping up the slope to the door. Link hadn't found a key down the path he had gone so now he was seriously debating smashing it with his shield again but as he looked at the keyhole he realized the shape wasn't as rigid s most keyholes it was rounded, like a pipe...

Link lifted the pipe at a distance lining it up with the keyhole before pushing it in, the lock itself vanished in green flames letting the chains fall to the floor and dissolve into black smoke leaving the double doors accessible to him and thankfully the smell of whatever was being smoked in the glass pipe vanished.

Taking a deep breath Link slowly pushed open the door and climbed into the basement, which wasn't a basement. The massive room before him was what he though he had seen from the outside, it was a library, the lines were lined with shelves sticking out form them while glass cases stood in a ring on the floor around the middle of the room filled with artifacts.

~My word... This is amazing!~ The ghost beamed as it started to flit about the room looking at the shelves and cases going on about the items within but he was speaking so fast Link just allowed the ghost to be happy as he glanced around. From the ceiling there wasn't much he could do or interact with but there was something that caught his eye, that same golden glow. This time it resided in the back of a large hearth which burned with red flame, he knew he had no way to climb up and reach it but maybe, just maybe he could still hit it. Link quickly pulled his bow from within his sack and grabbed an arrow from his quiver before drawing the arrow back and taking aim at the crystal, with the sharp sound of cutting air the arrow flew fast and true as it stuck into the crystal and the color within shifted to blue.

Just as before the temple started to shake but this time Link didn't have time to brace himself, the entire temple flipped leaving him to free fall twenty feet towards the floor. However just before he hit the ground he stopped falling, the wind beneath him had become a whirlwind narrowly saving him from harm. Just as quickly as it appeared it dispersed letting Link fall into a crouch, using the Eye he quickly scanned the area until he saw where the magic had come from, toward the southern edge of the ring of glass cases was one with what looked like a boomerang inside it, but the boomerang itself looked like a wing with a golden brace at the bend and a red stone set into it. Link began to move towards it and the closer he got he could see the stone was glowing and that atop the feathers of the boomerang a small figure sat.

Pale soft green adorned her like light as it shimmered along her featureless naked body and feathered wings. The small fairy-like creature waved as Link looked at the case figuring the least he could do for saving her would be to free her. Then he met his old nemesis, another lock held the glass case securely closed, with a deep breath Link silently put away his bow before retrieving his shield once more. With a single strong swing he took off the lock and put away his shield before lifting the case off the fairy.

"There you go, you're free now..." the fairy shook her head and hover over to Link's head moving it to the boomerang before disappearing and a small twister would come to life around the boomerang and the very wind seemed to speak to him.

~Thank you Link but I am bound to this item, I just wish to do good while I am.~ The winds soon dispersed but the boomerang retained the same pale green glow to the Eye. Unbeknownst to Link however, the ghost had been watching over his shoulder since he had taken off the lock on the case.

~Amazing, the Gale Boomerang, it's an ancient item from the hero of Ordon, it had become lost a short time after his alleged passing. This relic is simply incredible.~ The ghost gushed as it looked over the weapon in Link's hand however a sudden rush of heat and light made Link's instinct kick in jumping back just in time to dodge a fireball that had come crashing down, the red flame in the hearth had come to life and now Link could see the third Poe within as it slowly emerged and created a cluster of fireballs in the air above him.

~Wind may smother flame...~ The voice came on a breeze and he knew what to do, as the fireballs began to rush toward him he pulled back his arm and he felt the wind around him pick up, wrapping around the boomerang before he threw it straight at the Poe. As soon as he had let go the wind around the boomerang exploded into a twister swallowing every fireball and turning into a tempest of flame before colliding with the Poe and trapping it within the flames.

The blast left the Poe astonished and blackened before it sniffled and flew up through the ceiling, to Link's surprise the boomerang returned to him even though he knew he had thrown it wrong. Taking hold of the weapon as it came into range, Link would place it on his belt feeling a sense of comfort with it being there. Now with everything right side up again he could get to the doors in the grand foyer, taking one last look around the room for anything he may have missed, the ghost was now studying a few tomes that had been left out. Seeing the man so engrossed with what he had been searching for made him feel glad he was able to get him here, quietly Link would slip back out into the hallway climbing the stairs to reach the hallway once again.

This time though a hole had been burned through the wall a short ways down the corridor on the right, As Link moved to check it out he recognized the room on the other side, the Poe that had just attacked him must have burned through the wall getting away. The thought only hung in his mind for as long as it took him to walk through the hole into the foyer where the torches from earlier were now lit with a green, red, and blue flame as well as a purple flame.

The purple flame began to float out of the torch and slowly link could see it take the form of the fourth Poe sister as violet flames wrapped around it. The shadows within seemed to glare at him before it swiped a torch through the other three flames absorbing them and turning its flames into a shimmering haze of red, blue, green, and purple. As the flame begin to flicker becoming a solid color before shifting to a different color over and over like a roulette, Link took hold of the boomerang in his left hand and brought his shield up with his right just as the color stopped on red and fireballs began to fill the air. It was the same way that the red Poe had attacked him so he brought back his left hand until he felt the winds begin to churn and threw it again watching as the gale sucked in the flames becoming a burning storm against before it slammed into the super Poe.

As the smoke cleared the Poe was smoldering just as before but this time the red flame on its torch had gone out, reacting out of rage the Poe's flame started to shimmer between colors once more this time stopping on blue. The Poe then sank into the floor which began to glow blue as azure flames sprouted along the edges of the walls. The blue Poe had possessed a statue to battle Link before but there weren't any statues here. Then a deep rumble and the sound of stone grinding on stone filled the room.

Except for the massive statue of a knight that was bowing at the foot of the stairs. The giant statue easily twice Link's size came to life and slowly rose to its feet before turning towards Link with a broadsword to match.

"Really?..." Link asked feeling vastly out of his depth as flames appeared in the knight's visor, it lunged forward acting first as it slammed its blade into the ground. Link barely had enough time to inch out of the way of the blade but was thrown by the shock-wave and was skidding across the floor as he cursed the Poe that wanted him dead. What could he do though, moving his shield to his back knowing there would be no point in trying to block a strike from the giant Link tried to look around but there was nothing in the room but the torch stands in the center of the room, he couldn't run either with the blue flames sealing off every direction.

Then he got an idea, as Link focused on the four corners of the room he tried to will his thoughts to the spirit within the Gale boomerang before hurling the boomerang at the knight but all it did was laugh as the boomerang curved around it missing entirely as it spun towards its first target. Once it reach the opposite corner of the foyer it started to glide along the walls sucking in the blue flames as the winds brought it all together into an orb around the boomerang, target after target the boomerang would circle the whole room before flying straight into the knight's chest exploding with all the force of the flames gathered shattering the stone statue as bits of it showered the room while the boomerang returned to Link once more leaving a staggered super Poe to rock back and forth before glaring even harder before pointing its flame at Link only having green left.

"I'm not breathing that crap again!" Link roared as he hurled the boomerang once more straight at the Poe snuffing out the green flame. The Poe blinked looking at its torch before the shadow and the multicolored flames went out dropping the iron torch.

With the Poe finally gone Link fell to the floor heaving as he stared up at the ceiling feeling so drained from fighting the super Poe. With a pained hiss he would slowly sit up before looking at the surging wall of black flame atop the stairs, chances are whatever was within was worse than what he had just fought by far but he didn't have much of a choice he had to keep going, if not to find his brother than he needed to do it for the people of Ordon so that they wouldn't be trapped because of it.

"Thank you Gale..." Link muttered the words as the boomerang on the floor next to him whistled with wind in response, he took hold of it before trying to stand again feeling his muscles scream at him. Slowly he moved over to the steps and began to climb them until he reached the landing and stood face to face with the wall of fire, with all his force Link threw the boomerang at the wall and as soon as it made contact the wind around burst out blowing away the flames, but as it returned to Link it shifted its path slightly and the winds picked up one of the pots beside the double doors carrying it over and dropping it at his feet just as Link grabbed the weapon.

From within the shards of the pot a pink light began to glow before it suddenly shot up in front of link's face giggling like a bell ringing before kissing his forehead and disappearing, the contact made Link feel invigorated again as his muscles returned to full strength and his cuts sealed up. Whatever it was the sprite in the boomerang must have known and got it to help rejuvenate him, now he felt like he could go in there and still die, but at least put up a fight now.

As Link pushed the doors open he saw nothing but blackness and heard only the sounds of crackling flames, once he had entered a dark force slammed the door shut behind him and sealed it. The sharp boom of the doors made Link jump but it made him even more nervous as he began to see a light ahead of him, a pillar of black flame.

~You dare to invade my home, that I have long since captured and have torn away from your world, bug?~ The voice boomed around Link but he knew it came from the pillar, the more his eyes adjusted the more he could make out as he saw the outline of giant sitting on what appeared to be a throne of flame.

"The state of the temple has caused issues for the people of my providence, I'm only here to end that." While Link's voice was deceptively steady his hands were shook as he reached back to draw his sword and ready his shield.

~Your world does not concern me, and even if you had the guts to battle me, your pathetic body couldn't handle a clash with Stalduke, the Lord of Bones!~ The figure stood up and the throne dispersed filling the area with light as the dark flames climbed the walls revealing the giant to Link. Like the Stalfos he fought before his upper body was all bone besides a set of gauntlets and a helmet that glowed with the same dark light, his lower body was in mail and black cloth tattered from age while its feet were clad in black greaves, however unlike the Stalfos, he was three times Link's size.

"Oh Farore help me..." As the words slipped past Link's lips Stalduke roared and began to charge towards him. Without knowing what to do Link turned and ran to his right desperate to get out of the way of the charging titan and to his surprise he felt faster as he got out of the way just in time while Stalduke rammed into the wall shaking the whole room, the impact seemed to rattle him as he took a moment to regain his bearings, the spare moment made link see something though, the armor on the back of his right greave had a gap in it where he could see the white of Stalduke's bone within.

That gave him an idea and a plan, using his speed Link would move himself behind Stalduke just before he turned to find him. Again he would roar out and charge towards him, but this time Link rolled to the left of the charge letting the giant surge by him and crash into the wall and while he was staggered Link ran and slammed his iron sword deep through the gap and through the bone severing it. While Stalduke lost his balance and fell back slamming into the ground, he did nothing but laugh as Link avoided his downfall.

~Clever bug, but what will knocking me off my feet do?~ It was then that Link leaped onto the sternum of the massive skeleton and ran as fast he could towards Stalduke's head and with a powerful surge Link would leap into the air while aiming his sword down, as his weight brought him down the force would slam the point down through the slits in it's helm and as the anguished cry of the skeleton rang out Link knew he hit his target.

"Who's a bug now jack ass?" Link grinned as he pulled his sword free and jumped back down to the floor before the skeleton could slam his hands into him as he struggled to remove the helmet and when he did he didn't look any better. Beneath the head gear the dark spirit's head was a skull shrouded in black flame though now it had a crack down the middle from where Link had stabbed him and black flames were spilling out.

~I'LL CRUSH YOU, YOU INSOLENT INSECT!~ Stalduke's voice and flames raged as Link couldn't help but grin, he had managed to maim a being that massive and otherworldly but the skeleton didn't think it was as funny. Stalduke charged him leaving burning foot prints in his wake at an even greater speed, the sudden burst in speed made Link falter slightly as he moved out of the way but he managed to duck between the skeleton's legs before it crushed but what he saw as he turned back scared him to death. Stalduke's own head popped free from it's neck and fell to the floor creating a splash of black flame as it hit, Link's reflexes are the only reason he wasn't bathed in black flame as he narrowly avoided the crash, but even that couldn't help him as the head bounced towards him making a wave of flame with every impact.

"Baddaybaddaybadday!" Link started to chant as he outran the flames until Stalduke finally returned to his body before preparing to rush him again. The flames were a problem and that he at least had a plan for, as with the stone giant Link couldn't deflect any attack it used so he put away his shield and grabbed a hold of the gale boomerang feeling it surge with wind. This time as Stalduke charged straight for him Link would meet his charge head on and sliding between his legs using the slide to spin around and prep his throw as he watched Stalduke collide with the wall again and his head came down laughing. That howling cackle was swiftly silenced though as Link threw the boomerang the second he heard the head pop free and as the skull fell it was no longer wreathed in flame.

~What? How did you put out my flames!?~ The skull cried as Link rush toward the immobile skull and jumped into the air swinging down the blade as hard as he could slicing clean through the bone and finally silencing the Lord of Bones.

Link watched as the massive body fell to the ground and scattered bones slid across the floor, while mere moments later the skull began to crumble away revealing a sliver of what looked like glass roughly the size of his sword. As he reached out to touch it would shine with golden light and Link could feel his energy return but his body still felt battered. Although with the warmth coursing through his body he couldn't help but smile as he slowly collapsed on the floor while all the darkness was sapped away and a blue light cradled around the young hero.


	5. Hylian Gas Station

**5\. Hylian Gas Station**

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 **This chapter has a bit of a tribute to a good friend of mine so please no flaming, also i feel I may need to start including a speech type guide in these lol, let me know what you think.**

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Warmth...

Warmth spun around Link's body as he hung in the air, slowly he began to open his eyes to a dusky violet sky and wisps of wavering blue and gold light drifted up into the air seemingly becoming the stars themselves. As more of his senses were regained he noticed the familiar sensation of water cradling his body though it was warm and his body seemed to tingle. Once he finally felt his motor function return to him he began to sit up but gasped and hissed in pain grabbing his side as his muscles sang out in a chorus of agony creating a sharp ringing noise in his ears.

"Ahh son of a bitch that hurts!" His voice rang out across the water echoing off the the tall stone walls of the spring bleached white from minerals and sunlight. Link's breath hitched in his throat struggling to breath as he oriented himself without letting go of his side.

*Young hero... Thou hath awoken...* Instantly Link's body was on edge as he reached back to grab his blade but found it gone, in fact his pack, sword and shield were missing. As his eyes looked around through the gold and blue pillars of light he found them on the edge of the spring and that's when he recognized where he was, This was Ordon's Sacred Spring, supposedly home to the area's guardian. Before he could force his body to obey him an off-green twister spun before his face halting his rush to obtain his gear while Link easily recognized the Gale Boomerang within the twister he couldn't understand why she was stopping him.

*At ease... You have no enemy here...* The voice seemed to echo through him rather than come from any direction at all. Though the golden glow seemed to increase while the blue faded away and it brought Link's attention deeper into the fountain as a sphere of golden light wrapped in bands of light appeared hovering in place looking like it was a grand throne created by the way the spring and stones had come to be. Slowly the whistling of wind coming from the boomerang faded and it came to rest on the surface of the water by his knees. While his body was still beyond pissed at Link, he was now in a position to stand up right as he faced the sphere.

*My sincerest apologies that this spring doth not have the power it once did... Hopefully it doth grant thee some succor though...* As the guardian spoke it brought back Link's memories of the battle he had fought against the StalDuke and the pain that had reverberated through his body from striking the steel of the ghost's possessed body. Idly spreading out his fingers before pulling them back into a fist once more, the pain had mostly vanished though he figured the rest of his body was screaming from pushing himself to the brink.

"I... Thank you" What more could the blonde say as his eyes drifted down tot he water feeling somewhat guilty for reacting to the guardian as if it were an enemy.

*Nonsense... You restored balance to both Faron and myself... Our realms are no longer twisted thanks to your actions young hero...* The voice seemed almost humored at the thought of what Link had accomplished but being called a hero didn't sit well in his mind.

"I'd prefer you not call me that, I haven't done anything heroic, the temple was in my way so I tried to find a way around or through it." After Link spoke, an idle silence hung in the air as the guardian contemplated what he had said.

*Very well... Continue on your journey to find your brother and may the light guide your way...* The guardian's parting words were echoed with a soft surge from the spring as the sphere sank into the water and the golden light would slowly bleed away into the fountain rejuvenating Link's body. Although as Ordona faded away he couldn't help hearing something in the way the voice spoke, as if it was trying not to crack a smile while it spoke.

Not that it had a mouth, or a face, or a body...

It had to be in his head.

After a few seconds of testing and stretching his body Link was sure that he could continue and his muscles wouldn't attempt to rebel from his control. Turning back towards the shore where his things were, it had seemed the Gale Boomerang had somehow already drifted over to his things which couldn't help but make him smile, like he had someone with him on the journey as he collected and repositioned his things on his body once more. Heading to the gate into the springs that was supposed to connect to the road he was previously on Link noticed the glint of metal from the road and reached back to grab his blade before a familiar voice permeated the dawn air.

"Link? Is that you?" Almost instantly Link dropped his arm and breathed a sigh, as he saw the same warrior from the village approaching him with a lantern. "What happened out here? Villagers reported seeing a surge of light in the sky and I was sent to investigate. The good news is the doorway is gone and the road is back to normal but we have no idea how, do you?"

"Ah, hey Wilhelm," Link breathed out relieved before suddenly realizing he had remembered the man's name out of hand. "I think I did... You know what never mind you wouldn't believe it sounds like a nightmare."

"If you say so..." Wilhelm replied quietly looking over Link noticing the slight damage to his clothes. "Have you been trying to find your way through since you left yesterday?"

"Yesterday? Crap I gotta go!" Link's voice jumped at the realization the sky above him was the dawn and not the dusk, if he moved fast enough he could probably still get moving before anyone could catch up to him and drag him back to Kokiri. However just as he cleared the gate and turned to book it toward the bridge that was just before the Oil Tycoon/Grill Master's shop a massive shadow loomed over him as a massive white horse whinnied standing on it's back legs, as it came down stamping it's hooves Link could feel the small tremor it created under its weight as a familiar voice punctuated the air.

"Where do you think you're going young man?" The harsh voice of his previous teacher sent a shiver up Link's spine as he looked up at Sorin who rode atop the strongest horse their village had raised. His eyes were strict and harsh as he stared through Link's soul while his figure was clad in pieces of plate armor, mainly greaves and gauntlets.

"Well... You see what happened was-" With that Link turned and bolted from his master rushing down the road ahead of him cursing the boundary against the Faron Woods that left him without cover as he glanced behind him in time to see his master notch an arrow before firing at Link's leg aiming to stop him and not kill. Before the whistle even reached him Link jumped toward the wall narrowly missing the arrow as it sank into the ground, only steping twice onto the wall before jumping back onto the path before he heard the rumble of hooves striking the ground behind him. Somehow it urged him to run faster as he moved even further snaking around the curves of the path until he caught site of the bridge ahead.

"It's a straight shot Link you won't be able to dodge here!" Sorin's voice echoed behind him as his feet hit the wood changing the sound of his footfalls although he took a second to orient himself as the pressure of each step changed with the rope bridge. The whinny of the horse behind him as the horse skidded to a halt at the edge of the bridge couldn't help but make Link smirk as he pushed to the other side. Once his feet hit earth once more he turned to look at his master in time to see an arrow not even 5 feet from sinking into his left knee. Time seemed to slow as he watched the arrow slowly inching towards its target, it couldn't end like this, he wouldn't let his adventure be ended by an arrow to the knee dammit!

At that moment he would hear the arrow make impact, but it was in the ground behind him and slightly to the right, in truth Link had teleported again, barely a foot to the left to dodge the arrow. As Link stood in shock he looked from the arrow to his master who stared at him in a daze for a few moments before sighing and letting his arms fall before waving. That gesture was his sign of giving his blessing to continue, the ability to dodge that shot with a barely a breath's worth of time. A Small smile came to Link's lips as he would nod and turn following the path onward until it branched leading to the left, into Faron Woods, and to the right, to Hyrule Fields and his destination.

Just as Link passed the intersection he felt the familiar pang in his stomach, not of pain but as hunger. He hadn't eaten for close to twenty-four hours now plus the exercise of the manor and his mad dash burned off a lot of his energy but that shouldn't be much of an issue, Link knew there was a small place up ahead that sold food and lantern oil to travelers. After a couple more bends in the path the clearing came into view as the building sat in the alcove to the right of the area while a large fire pit and eating area was on the left side.

"Coro's Stop and Fuel" was a family owned and passed down business from what Link understood from his few stops here to gather lantern fuel for the village. As Link reached the bar-styled counter a man with a large afro and equally large hairnet appeared out of thin air before him offering a bow of courtesy before taking out a pen and holding his hand open under it.

"Welcome to Coro's Stop and Fuel, we offer high quality lantern fuel and tasty snacks for any and all who may happen upon our fine establishment, how may I help you today sir?" The man offered a lazy smile as he stood ready to write the order, despite his professional attitude and timely appearance he looked like he had just woken up from a nap.

"Um... Honestly anything that will give me energy I haven't ate since yesterday and I ran... a lot." Link answered almost pathetically as the man gave him an understanding smile and put the pen away before heading into the building where Link could hear the sound of fire and what sounded like bubbling but he didn't question it as he patiently waited. After roughly fifteen minutes, the man returned with a plate and a large slab of fish but it was brown and looked like it was covered in bits of bread.

"One Fried Ordonian Catfish Special, specially designed to get back your stamina and energy." The man grinned before offering Link a glass of mulled wine and a few utensils before heading back inside. While it looked strange, and smelled strange, it couldn't be that bad if he was selling it. With a shrug he used the fork he had been given to break off a piece of the fish before taking a cautious bite. It was amazing, strange but amazing. Like a starving cat, Link scarfed down the rest of the fish in no time flat until he felt full again, sighing contentedly he would take a few drinks of the mulled wine before finding a rooting through his pouch paying 20 rupees for the excellent meal. The man happily took the money and bowed to Link as he got to his feet before waving good-bye and heading down the road leading out to the southern Hyrule Fields.

"Oh Hylia, that fish was amazing!" The young blonde grinned as he continued along the beaten path seeing the trees start to clear up ahead. "You know I think I can run the rest of the way!"

Link crouched slightly, just enough to get the strength to push off with a good start, it didn't take long for him to break the treeline and emerge out onto the vast fields where the massive walls and castle loomed high in the distance before him, with a grin Link picked up the pace heading straight ahead like an arrow until he heard his stomach rebel against him. The feeling was like nothing he had ever felt before as he fell to his knees hurling up what had been his meal but it felt like acid as it burned his throat, he couldn't get air fast enough as he struggled to stand.

"Th-that bastard fed me p-poison..." Before he could even take a step Link fell back onto the grass feeling a hollow pit in his stomach as his energy drained from him slowly bringing him to blackness as he reached up trying to grasp at the castle with his shaking hand before his vision cut out.

The familiar thud of his head on a shaky wooden surface brought Link out of his coma making his vision swim as he tried to look around, he smelled the hay before he realized he was laying in it, groaning he would slowly sit up holding the edge of the cart to steady himself.

"Oh, you're awake! Good I thought you had died from eating a poison mushroom or something of the sort." A surprised but manly voice came from the driver of the cart up front who had apparently picked Link up as he laid dead on the side of the road. The cart also held a few large burlap sacks as a cold mass fell on his thigh drawing his gaze to the water skin.

"There's some peppermint and ginseng back there from Lake Hylia you can chew on some to try and help your stomach if you want, there's water in there too." Moving almost automatically, Link would roll toward the sacks searching through them till he found the ginseng and placed it in his mouth idly gnawing on the tapered end drawing out the moisture within gradually. Once his stomach stopped feeling like it was eating itself he sat up and blinked his eyes hard trying to make his vision stop being blue. After a few moments he moved to sit against the edge of the cart beside the driver taking a drink from the water skin the man had tossed him.

"Thanks for picking me up sir," As Link glanced around the area he couldn't tell where he was and with the sun hanging in the center of the sky he couldn't tell what direction either. As the young man continued to look around he came to look at his would be savior. The man had a bright farmer's tan alluding more to his profession as if the contents of the cart didn't already say it as well, his hair was black and cut short, slicked back by sweat, his eyes were bright and relaxed as he just focused on the way ahead. He seemed easily older than Link by at least five to ten years and he was built like he had done his work his whole life. While Link looked further his gaze followed the leather reigns that hooked into the harness of a massive Ordonian Stallion that pulled the cart like it was nothing.

"Are you a farm hand too?" The man's deep voice drew Link's eyes back to him having seen the way the blonde was watching the horse.

"Uh yeah, kinda, I'm from Kokiri so we work with Ordon a lot," In truth it was more some sense of relief from seeing something so familiar when he had no idea where he was. "By any chance are we heading to Castle Town? I'm on my way there looking for my brother."

"Sorry to say there champ but Castle Town is on strict lock down only essentials are getting in and out, the order came down about four days ago give or take," The man's relaxed air seemed to dissipate after Link brought up Castle Town which probably meant he had a lot of business he was losing out on. However Link must have betrayed some sort of emotion because the man just smiled and patted his shoulder. "I have a ranch at Kakariko gorge and a friend that may be able to help you get in."

"Oh... um thanks..." Link answered almost numbly after hearing that it was going to be even harder to reach his brother now and by how nice this man was being to him.

"You already said thank you, say things too much and they lose their meaning ya'know?" The man's words made Link smile a bit as he watched along the road taking int the wide expanses of land and the deep gashes carved into it by the legendary water system that came from the Zora's Domain. As the light began to dip slightly in the direction they were heading the stallion rounded the corner bringing the farm into view along with a long add on of stables complete with a pin for his livestock to wander around in. The majority of the area was carved flat like an alcove on the side of a mountain while an incredibly sturdy bridge stood across the open area leading to what looked like a cave in a rock wall on the other side of the gap between the land. "By the way my name is Talio, I'm a specialized breeder, me and my family run our farm."

"Specialized breeder?" The words seemed like they shouldn't seem so out of place but he felt they were in the way the man stated so, most breeders would just say they were dog breeder or the like.

"Heh yeah, I help breed horses with special characteristics for the kingdom, usually they're just interested in more sturdy or speedy breeds like our big boy up here," Talio's spirits seemed to pick up a bit as he spoke about his craft while they closed in on his home while he reached up patting the stallion's flank. "Although lately we've been getting some really strange requests from the castle but they've bore some interesting little fillies."

"Daddy!" Before Link could ask what Talio meant a young girl came running up to the cart after the man had parked it beside the farm, she was barely taller than Link's knees as he slipped down to the ground after Talio who scooped up his daughter with a huge grin on his face, it was then at that moment that Link realized he didn't feel sick any more, hungry still but not sick. Although the next words he heard made him blink a few times in disbelief. "Daddy who is the grasshopper?"

"Grass... hopper..." The words seemed to bounce in Links head not sure if he heard it right leaving the blonde utterly dumbfounded as Talio burst out laughing.

"Don't give it much thought she names everything she sees," The farmer explained to link with a massive grin on his face while his daughter peeked over his broad shoulders staring at him with piercing blue eyes while her cream toned face was framed by her red hair. If Link didn't know better he could have sworn she looked like his mother, from where he stood he could see a woman with similar features watching from the doorway into the house beside the stables. "Why don't you head inside sweety? Daddy and his friend are gonna feed the horses before going in."

"Hmmmmmmm... Otay, if you say so!" The young girl smiled wide before slipping back to the ground before running to her mother. As the two went inside Link couldn't help at the sight of the happy family before Talio went over to the back of the cart and lifted a number of bails of hay that seemed more than human before motioning for Link to follow him, acting on instinct Link moved over picking up two as well struggling to keep up with the built man. Talio lead him into the barn stacking the bails before breaking down a fresh one and leading Link to the stables where the excited neighs of multiple horses could be heard and as Link followed the breeder he couldn't help but be impressed. Ordonian steeds; the sturdy breed hailing from the valleys built for war and travel, Gerudan Runners; lithe agile and an expert on any terrain, and even Zoran Caprics; a unique breed of fish-horse hybrids from the northern seas.

"Wow, these are amazing..." Link couldn't help but stare at the wide range of equines, the Zora Caprics in particular he had only seen drawings of and now here they were in their own lake-like enclosure and glittering scales.

"Heh glad you appreciate 'em but this is just the start let me show you the breeds the kingdom commissioned." Talio slapped him on the back as he left food for each stall before leading Link through a gate at the end where six stalls were separated from the rest.

"Although keep in mind my daughter names them all so don't hold that against me," the man grinned as he rubbed the back of his head and lead Link to the first stall. Inside was a young pony coated in orange fur with a mane like gold, it's eyes seemed to sparkle like light through the leaves as it stood and walked over to them at the gate, nearly every step Link could feel as fresh grass was left in its wake. As soon as it reached the men Talio retrieved a red apple from his clothing before handing it to her. "This here is Apple Jack, she loves apples and we had named her Jackie but Roma liked Apple Jack better. We bred her from the Ordonian species and both her and her parents were fed special oats infused with earth magic by a mage from the Castle's council, the result being a great amount of strength and nature stimulation."

As the orange filly laid upon its freshly grown bed to eat Talio lead him to the next stall where a pink toned pony was... skipping? Through out its pin without a care in the world. "Roma calls this one Pinkie, she just happened one day when I let Roma try to feed a few Gerudan Runners for fun, she seems to never run out of energy."

While it sounded interesting it also seemed like a horse that would be incredibly hard to break. Moving on to the next stall Link froze in place as he stared at the pony within, it was slightly smaller than the previous two and had a soft yellow color through out its coat with a pink mane, but its most striking feature was the presence of wings upon it's back. "This little filly is Fluttershy, as you guessed she is incredibly shy and so far only trusts Roma, we bred the little girl from a Gerudan and Capric both fed wind infused straw which seemed to change the Caprics water-aligned properties."

While Talio didn't make any motion to call over the bonafied pegasus he set his hand on the top of the gate and lightly brushed his hand along it like he was petting her before leading Link to the fourth stall. Inside was a similar yet polar opposite horse, with similar wings but a soft blue coat, the pony zoomed around in its stall flying like a bird leaving a trail like a rainbow behind it. To keep it contained it seemed to be attached to a rope in the center of the room after a short amount of time it came to a stop simply trotting on the ground and Link could see its mane was a multitude of colors like a rainbow. "Heh, Roma named this little speed demon Rainbow Dash, bred similar to Fluttershy but with an equal mix of lightning infused herbs for her health."

In the next next stall laid a single white horse and while it didn't seem too out of the ordinary at first, when Talio clicked his tongue and called it over he could see that its mane was a deep purple hue and a long white horn. "You bred a unicorn..."

"Heh pretty much, we got this girl from a pair of Ordonians fed a range of equally balanced magical aspects." As the pony reached the gate and nudged Talio's hand Link could easily see her coat shimmering as if it were made of diamonds. "The balance of magic has concentrated in her horn while also making her coat so unique, Roma named her Rarity after I explained what a diamond was."

Link would lightly touch the horses head stroking it a few times before Talio moved to lead him to the sixth gate. Within seemed to be an ordinary black pony, well mostly ordinary beside the navy mane the young stallion wore. "This little guy Roma named Magus, apparently she feels he has an amazing potential for magic though nothing significant has occurred yet. We bred him from a pair of Caprics with a large amount of balanced magics so hopefully he'll grow into his potential and become something truly amazing."

"I'm sure you're right, you're the breeder after all," While Link couldn't see anything particularly significant the way Talio spoke about the young stallion made him have faith in the pony as well. After a few moments of watching the stallion Talio turned to head back the way they came to lock up the stables, however as Link followed after him he heard a sharp snap and was taken to the ground in an instant flurry of blue and rainbows.

"Dashie get off him you hyperactive filly!" Talio barked as the pony nuzzled Link and he couldn't help but feel some kind of connection with the pegasus as the sound of wind whistled around him before the pony hoped and hovered back over the gate into its pin laying down content. "I'm sorry bout that, she's usually hyper but she doesn't take well to outsiders."

"It-It's okay just knocked the air out of me." Once the rope had been retied Talio was at Link's side like a flash pulling the weak boy to his feet like he was a rag doll.

"We should probably get some food in you before you starve eh?" With a cautious hand on Link's shoulder he lead him out to his home although with the lack of energy, Link's night felt like a blur of food and hay as he selflessly elected to sleep in the barn for the night curling up in the warm bundles finally allowing his body some semblance of rest since the start of his journey.


	6. Of Fruit, Herbs, and Bombs

**6\. Of Fruit, Herbs, and Bombs**

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 **Hello followers I apologize for the long wait, real life and lack of muse has been getting to me. Although I have been giving a lot of thought of using certain enemies and fighting styles from outside of Zelda as part of the story, let me know what you think of the idea.**

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The sudden piercing call of the rooster shocked Link from his slumber making him sit up right and look around taking in the barn that he had slept in the prior night, it was nothing you wouldn't expect; tools, feed, harness, rope and hay. With a quiet groan he slowly climbed to his feet and stretch hearing some pops from within as his body realigned though it resulted and a pleased sigh. Immediately after he brushed off the hay and dirt clinging to his clothes before heading out through the large barn doors to breathe in the cool morning air.

The light peeking over the horizon painted the dark of the night violet while pink skittered along where the sky met the earth. The sight made him Link smile a bit before he heard a rather loud thump, moving rather cautiously he moved around the corner but relaxed as he saw Talio loading the back of his wagon with a few large bags adorned with images of different fruit which pretty much told Link what he was doing without even asking. However the farmer seemed to sense him and turned to wave with a large smile almost as soon as Link had turned the corner. "Hey champ, how'd you sleep? It wasn't too chilly was it?"

"No not at all, thanks for putting me up," Link grinned and rub the back of his head a little embarrassed by the concern but still finding it comforting nonetheless. "Oh, I don't remember if I told you my name yesterday but it's Link."

"Link eh? Sounds good, simple and easy to remember," Talio commented as he went up to check the horses he had already hooked up to the harness of the wagon. "Roma still gonna call ya grasshopper though."

The joke was delivered with a playful grin despite Link's halfhearted glare before he responded with a defeated sigh. "Eh, I suppose that's fine, shes cute enough to get away with it."

Talio couldn't help but laugh to the blonde's response to being his daughter's latest victim as he finished readying his horses. "Haha, well if nothing else you're a good sport."

"Well my big brother is kinda similar, he always teased me and he's a lot worse." Link said as he leaned on the edge of the wagon while Talio checked everything in his wagon. "Where are you headed next?"

"Next up is Kakariko, its on the way to the friend I told you about he lives in Solvale to the north of Kakariko on the Eldin Plateau." Talio answered Link before climbing up onto the wagon before turning around to grab a smaller bag and digging around for it until he found a piece of bread and broke it in half holding half out to Link. "Heres your breakfast its time to head out."

The blonde nodded accepting the piece of bread before hopping up into the back of the wagon sitting with all the sacks which was surprisingly comfortable now that he didn't have a pit in his stomach. "Solvale, I remember hearing about it before, It was built when I was really young."

"Yeah that's right, its a relatively new place but its incredibly lively and it has tons entertainment." The man said as he whipped the reigns and began to steer his horses. They first circled the barn before getting on the worn road this time heading further west toward a valley etched along the edge of the mountains.

"So what does your friend do? Like in regard to how he can help me get in?" Link asked curiously looking up to Talio as he watched the road heading on while the air was still crisp and the sun was still waking.

"Well he has too many connections to count, I met him back when the town was first growing and he had a hand in everything, his commitment to the town is so strong he practically runs the place now." A soft chuckle came from the man's lips as they reached the beginning of the valley and much of the greenery fell away to stone and rock. "He's an adult but not too much older than you, maybe 26 years or so."

Link nodded thinking quietly, if hat was the case then he probably knew enough people to get him inside but he had no clue how. Now the sounds of birds chirping could be heard from above as they ventured out into the daytime. "I really appreciate everything you're doing for me, taking me there and all."

"Oh ho, sorry champ but I'm only going as far as Kakariko with this load, you've gotta make your way to Solvale from there." The man looked back at Link correcting him quietly, he didn't want to sound harsh or anything but he had things to do and he wanted to help Link as much as he could in the process.

"R-Right, my bad, thank you for what you've done already." The hylian bowed his quietly feeling a bit ashamed for assuming the man would just take him to wherever he needed like a servant. Although practically the instant he had finished the thought he felt a cool blob hit him in the side of his face and a wineskin fell into his lap.

"You've said thank you enough Link, drink up, it's rather arid around Kakariko." Talio responded his gaze still on the road ahead while the horses and wagon made their way through the tall rock walls. A faint smile appeared across Link's face as he accepted the man's water never expecting people to be so nice outside of the village. "We're almost there, if you don't mind helping unload I'll write down the directions for you."

"Sure thing it's no problem." The blonde answered happy to return the help after everything Talio had done. In the distance he could start to see the tops of buildings peeking over the edge of the valley walls and a sign hanging between the walls with 'KAKARIKO' printed in bold lettering as it swayed in the breeze.

As the wagon pulled through the narrow opening the morning sun saturated the men warming them after the shadowed journey, however Link's jaw dropped as soon as he had finished blinking so his eyes could adjust to the light. Before him was a large stone building which seemed to be designed to weather the winds, small trees surrounded the outside along with a well beside the door. To the south was massive pool of water with a raised level even further back filled with stone pillars, if he didn't know any better it looked like Ordona's spring. Along the edge was a few shops one of which Talio was beginning to pull up to.

As the wagon came to a stop and link hopped out he turned and was frozen in his tracks by what he saw, this was hardly a village it was practically the size of Castle Town. The walls of the cliffs had been dug out leaving a huge hollow for the village to thrive straight to the north of him was a busy street covered in shops on the West side while the East side were rows after rows of houses until they reached the cliff face surrounding the village, and far in the distance the giant peak of Death Mountain loomed in the sky. Link had been told long ago that the land masses continued to shift in this area and once the volcano had stood as the only mountain against the sky but now parts of the land had pressed back together making Death Mountain part of a large mountain range which spanned the Eastern border of Hyrule.

"The Gorons come from there, it's been their home for as long as anyone can remember," Link jumped suddenly from Talio's voice as he turned to see him holding a sack on his shoulder which he transferred to link with a heave. "They used to run a mine for a long time but they found somewhere with better ore."

"Got it, may get a chance to go there someday." Link breathed as he balanced the sack before grabbing another sack taking one more look at the glowing volcano before carrying the large sacks of fruit into the shop beside them. The small store was filled with crates that had what he assumed were other fruits though he hadn't seen them before, in one crate was a cluster of long, curved, yellow fruits connected by a stem at the tips, while another had red apple-like fruit but they had a dark almost fuzzy stem. Before he could look at more of them however he heard a cough from the back where a woman stood with sandy skin and bleach blonde hair.

"You just gonna stand around or you gonna work?" Her voice was deep for a woman but her demeanor commanded respect though Link supposed you had to have some kind of presence to run a business. He nodded and moved up to her glancing at her clothes on his way to her, she wore a somewhat dirty white shirt with a length of leather holding the neck and front together showing her tan skin while her lower body was clad in what looked like over-alls but she had tied the straps like a belt to keep them on and her feet were clad in brown leather boots. When his eyes met hers they wear an earthy green and freckles spread across her cheeks while a length of hay he hadn't noticed before hung from her lips.

"Well you don't look like much but there's more to a person than looks, set those behind the counter." The woman commented before walking past him and outside, Link assumed she was going out to talk to Talio but he was wrong, she came back in carrying twice as many sacks as he had. Damn... So that's what she meant, before he could be in her way he quickly moved aside for her before heading back out to the wagon to grab the last of the produce and while Talio was back on the wagon, he wore a huge grin while scribbling on a piece of paper. This must be hilarious for him.

As Link set down the last three sacks the woman patted his back with a grin before grabbing a bag form behind the counter and heading back outside, Link followed behind her seeing her counting out loud while setting rupees into Talio's hand. "And 200, thanks again Tal, no one grows apples like you do."

"Its nothing Cindey, you know we love doing business with you." Talio offered her a smile before putting the rupees away. "Sides we've known each other since we were kids."

"Heh true that, though I look so much younger." Cindy smirked teasing him before letting out a laugh.

"We can't all eat healthy, exercise, and drink spirit water every day you know?" Talio commented now wearing the same unamused look that Link had worn earlier which made him smile a bit seeing the exchange leave the man somewhat flustered.

"Oh I know, also you string bean," Cindy commented before looking at Link and and taking out a couple of red rupees and handing them to him despite Link now wearing the same look Talio was. "This is for helping unload, thanks sugar."

"N-No problem." Link quietly answered as his annoyance melted away at the way her voice changed like it was dripping with honey.

"Come on Cindey you can't do that to the poor kid without any warning," Talio called to the woman as she grinned and headed back into her shop to set up the apples they had brought her. "Girl is a trouble-maker, anyhow, Link come here."

"Huh? Yeah I'm here," The blonde male responded still shaking off the woman's charm moving up beside Talio to see if there was anything he needed.

"Careful Link, she's broken more than her fair share of hearts, here," The warning seemed fair enough as he handed Link a small rolled up piece of parchment, however, it made him look up at Talio confused, "These are the instructions to find my friend in Solvale, his name is Magus."

"Oh, got it, North of here right?" Link asked one more time for confirmation although he could have probably asked anyone in the village.

"That's right, and make sure you be careful, a lot of strange things have been happening lately," Talio answered Link while nodding. "Well, I need to get back, hope you make it to where you need to go."

"I will, and thanks again even if you don't want to hear it." Link said with a grin before grabbing his sword and shield from the wagon and clasping them to his body once more. Talio couldn't help but smile and shake his head before reaching over to ruffle Link's hair and displace his hat. "Hey!"

"Keep that mouth in check too, it seems just as liable to get you in trouble." The man said before whipping the reigns and start the horse's stride while he turned around in the open area before heading back through the way they had came. The hylian couldn't help but wear a smile as he watched him leave, it seemed like it was really good to meet people, although his thoughts were interrupted by a loud whistle from the shop behind him causing him to turn and look back to Cindy who was now wearing a cowboy hat atop her blonde hair.

"You best not spend that all in one place hun." The honey covered words, again, she punctuated with a playful wink and while both of them knew she was doing it to get a rise out of him he couldn't help but blush before turning around and heading into town leaving the woman giggling as she returned to her wares.

Using the opportunity to calm his hormones, Link looked through the shops along the West side of the town, first thing he came across seemed to be an all-purpose store stocked with wooden shields, arrows, seeds, and bombs, however they wouldn't sell him the bombs since they required a special type of pouch to carry them. The info left Link wanting as he thought about the cool things he could do with bombs, like attach them to his arrows.

While slightly annoyed, his blush had faded while Link went to the next building far larger and louder as it seemed to be an inn and a bar in one. He had began to step up to the doors when a man came flying from one of the windows skittering across the window and the blonde hylain could hear someone within, shockingly a woman, yelling about the man's tab. With the resulting drama Link promptly turned away from the doors to continue his way down the street however someone ran into him causing him to fall back into the dirty road and while it wasn't wood or stone it still left him slightly dazed as his head made contact.

"Ow... That hurt..." Link muttered quietly sitting up to rub the back of his head as he heard a high-pitched voice gasp followed by hands touching his shoulders and head.

"Are you okay?! I'm so sorry I was in a hurry and I couldn't see where I was going!" The voice, which he could identify as feminine, spoke so swiftly that Link was surprised he caught every word. As his vision slowly came back into focus he could see the girl who was kneeling in front of him looking over his head for signs of injury, she wore a long dress in rows of colored patterns kind of like the paint along the buildings in the village. As his gaze rose further he could see she had olive toned skin and dark hair, her eyes almond-shaped and a brilliant shade of brown. Her features were soft and innocent in contrast to the blonde's striking demeanor, though she was much younger, maybe a year or two younger than Link himself.

"Y-Yeah I'm okay, and its fine don't worry I wasn't looking either." Link offered her a smile and she quickly relaxed with a large sigh which made him smile a bit bigger finding it cute that she worried so much. "My name is Link, nice to meet you."

"Oh, I'm Rodana, it's nice to meet you as well." She answered with a smile while brushing her hair back. So this is the kind of girl his mother had meant when she talked about the type of woman he and his brother should look for. The thought made him blush faint seeing her beauty despite it being tame and subtle, however those thoughts were cut short as he saw a wagon being pulled through the streets and it was headed straight toward them.

Reacting on a dime, Link pushed his body forward in order to grab hold of Rodana's waist before turning and diving away from the street just in time to dodge the wagon while the dust swirled around them. Link's eyes were still focused on the wagon as it rolled away while he held the girl to his chest and that fact slowly set in making him look to her and her face was painted red with her blush and again unknown to Link a golden triangle glimmered on the back of his left hand.

"S-Sorry..." Link moved slowly helping her stand up before letting go and rubbing the back of his head, his own face red from the actions he had taken. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah... that's two I owe you." Rodana replied smiling small while looking up at him her brown eyes seeming bigger as Link glanced away finding her cute beauty getting to him.

"Is there anything you need or I can do for you? I make potions and other things to help keep up energy, or maybe I could give you a tour around Kakariko?" While her face was still pink, her voice came out easier than when they had began to speak. The herbs could be a great help but he felt it wasn't fair to accept her wares for just a few coincidences, if it had been some job she had sent him on sure but that wasn't the case. However it did seem like an excellent idea to have a local show him around the huge village.

"Yeah a tour sounds nice, it will be good to know where everything is." After Link answered the girl she smiled big and reached out taking his left hand, which had stopped glowing, and began to lead him along the store fronts.

"well if you made it this far, you've seen the general store and the inn, maybe the food shops by the spirit spring." Her voice chirped softly while her gaze moved between Link's blue eyes and the shops a head of them. "Many of our stores are craft shops since a lot of people from all over like our style, although we do have some practical and specialty shops, including a rare goods store and the jewel of Kakariko! The Bo-"

A large explosion from a large building seeming to be made of steel cut of Rodana while smoke started to pour out of multiple windows all over the building. Link's instinct push him to run in however Rodana held onto his hand stopping his sprint and walking towards it calmly while shaking her head with a smile on her face. "The jewel of Kakariko, the Bomb Emporium."

As Link followed Rodana inside the building was shrouded in black smoke and from somewhere inside he could hear someone coughing. With each step they made there was a cling to follow it which drew Link's eyes to the floor where plates of steel were bolted down just like the outside which left the blonde to assume the entire building was metal. Although it made sense if there were explosions like that all the time and from the way Rodana reacted to the blast that seemed to be the case.

"Baris! I've got a guest for you to meet!" The girl's voice called reverberating through the metal building.

"Yeah yeah, I'll be right down," Another feminine voice called down though much deeper and older sounding. The response was followed by more clangs and curses as the girl moved overhead before slowly making her way down a staircase that lead to the open shop area they stood in. The girl was Link's height while wearing what looked like thick leather overalls and a thin shirt underneath to let her skin breath despite the heat of the shop both her hands and feet clad in thick black leather gloves and boots. Her skin was almost fire tanned and covered in black patches of soot while her black frizzy hair was pulled back into a puffy pony tail and seemed to be ever so slightly singed. Around her green eyes there were similar black marks but there was a border left from the protective goggles that now hung from her neck, however neither took away from her hard gaze. "...What do you want?"

"Baris don't be like that, he's a traveler," Rodana chastised her quietly while puffing up like her friend had embarrassed her. "He asked for a tour and I told him the emporium is the best store in the village."

"Oh... So you like him, you don't give out tours," As the girl's green eyes moved to Rodana her look changed to a wide smirk teasing her friend as she came the rest of the way over and ruffled her dark hair. Though that same hard look returned to Link as she turned aroudn to go back upstairs. "Well you know your review means the world to me but unless he's into bombs there's nothing to talk about."

"Wait, I am interested, the General Store said I needed a Bomb-" Link called out to Baris but as he explained the girl seemed to move in a flash standing directly before him as she held Link's other hand. "-Bag..."

"In that case I have a great assortment of things that I can show you, including a Bomb Bag to store them." Baris chimed in a voice that threw him for a loop, it was gentle. While Link could see a large amount of bombs behind the counter, Baris pulled him up the stairs to what he could only assume was her workshop by the look of things. Along one wall was a number of tools with a large dispensary filled with black powder, another wall had a bench with a black blast mark on it from where he assumed the last explosion had come from. Just at the edge of the work bench were a number of drawers each labeled with numbers. The girl moved over to the drawers peeking into a few before pulling out two bombs connected by a length of wire.

"This is my Bola-Bomb, you just throw em and after they wrap around their target they explode!" Baris explained while twirling the set of bombs in mid air however her grin was quickly replaced with a look of shock as she heard a click and threw the bombs out the window before an explosion rang out. Baris grinned a bit as she looked to Link. "I haven't quite figured out a good way to trip the pin yet..."

"Hang on there's this too!" She quickly went back to her drawers while Link and Rodana watched her, after a short while she pulled out a handful of what looked like marbles. "These are mar-bombs, designed for small controlled explosions!"

Although right after she said it they handful of bombs went off creating a poof of black smoke between them. "Though they don't pack much punch really... I'm guessing you'd like normal bombs?"

"Yeah that would be fine, I'm planning to attach them to my arrows." Link responded with a smile, the ideas weren't bad but they weren't fully realized yet. Baris nodded her head quietly heading downstairs to fill a Bomb Bag for him leaving the two in her workshop for a few moments. Out of curiosity Link took the time to look at the drawers to see what else she had dreamed up and while some were like a ball on a chain which looked like it worked by whipping the ball at them. Others however he couldn't imagine how they would work, though one drawer caught his interest as he saw a red glow. Slowly opening the drawer he saw a glowing red bomb slowly pulsating with light.

"DON'T TOUCH THAT!" The sudden yell from Baris made Link jump away looking back to her as she sighed in relief. "I haven't been able to test that one yet, I don't know what it'll do since I made it with smoke from the monsters that have been appearing lately. Anyway come on down and I'll ring you up."

"R-Right sorry," Link apologized quietly while Rodana followed him down quietly not having much knowledge of her friend's wares besides that they were explosive. As Link and Rodana reached the bottom of the stairs he leaned over the counter while getting the two red rupees form his pouch. "This is all I got how much will get me?"

"Hm... Exactly one full Bomb Bag, with twenty booming beauties ready for use, also take this too," Baris commented sliding him the bag and a small metallic item that looks like a crab claw while one side of it had a clip. "It's an igniter, I figure if you're running around all over the place chances are you don't have the time to light a match and set up the bomb in time to use it, it can clip onto your belt."

"Thanks that sounds great." Link offered her the red rupees and a grin as he accepted the bag and igniter clipping it to his belt as recommended.

"I'm glad you two came to an agreement." Rodana's soft voice perked up as she smiled looking over them both though Baris rolled her eyes and flicked some of her soot off at the younger girl.

"You worry too much you know, I'm just busy, now you two get out of here before I get a cavity shoo shoo." The green-eyed girl ushered moving out from behind the corner and escorting them out. It seemed strange to Link but she was probably messing with Rodana again while Rodana herself was blushing again and struggling to find her words before the two were outside the shop. "Don't have too much fun or else your pop will get mad."

With that Baris closed the door while wearing a big grin though it left Rodana fuming as she stared at the door obviously taking the teasing harshly even though it was obvious no harm was meant. After a few moments Rodana let out a huff before looking back to Link and smiling small. "I'm sorry for that she she has a habit of getting me riled up..."

"It's not a problem, I know the type," Link responded smiling as he took her hand again."So what else is on the tour?"

Rodana smiled big holding his hand before continuing a bit further to the other end of the strip where there was a large valley leading towards Death Mountain that was adorned with minerals and stones. "This is the entrance to Death Mountain, as I'm sure you've seen a number of Gorons through the streets they have their own settlement along the mountain and an amazing hotspring."

After that she turned and head back along the east side of the strip which had the houses filling it. Children were running around and playing while some adults worked helping each other move things. "This is the residential part of Kakariko, pretty self explanatory I suppose, and that's all of Kakariko!"

Rodana's high spirits couldn't hep but make Link smile as he watched her walk along side him looking around the village before looking back to Link. "It's amazing, it's huge compared to Kokiri."

"Oh Kokiri? That's deep in the forest right?" Her question made Link rub the back of his head realizing he just admitted to being a hillbilly but nodded anyway. "Mmm it must be nice out there, so peaceful."

"Yeah usually but it has its momen-" "HEEEEELP PLEASE SOMEONE HEEEEELP!" The tender moment was shattered as a voice rang out silencing Link and they both looked to the East of the large stone building where a path ran through another valley like the one he had came through. A young man in farm clothes was heaving between yells and string seemed to be attached to him. Many of the villagers and Gorons stopped and looked toward him confused while Link ran over to him.

"Hey whats going?" The hylian questioned the male, roughly his age but as he reached out to touch his shoulder he found that it was string all over him at all it was spider silk. The young man looked around shaking as his breath heaved, his eyes darted around like he was manic or on drugs but as Link touched him he grabbed a hold of his arm.

"S-S-Spiders... everywhere, they climbed out of the gorge along the fields and started attacking us they took everyone who were in the fields... They're gonna be eaten... WE SHOULDN'T HAVE TRIED TO SEARCH THE GORGE!" The boy finally creamed out before running into the village leaving Link confused as he looked to Rodana hoping she could elaborate on what the young man had meant but she was gone. He couldn't begin to make out where she went as the other villagers had no started to run to their homes to take safe haven.

As Link watched them all panic he couldn't help but feel like he was the only one around who was going to do anything about the problem regardless that it wasn't his problem or even his village. With a low sigh he headed towards the small valley walking only a few minutes before it opened to a wide area that was filled with crop patches and irrigation trenches. However not a soul was around and the crops bowed and waved with spider silk blowing in the breeze.

Reaching into his pouch he grabbed his bow and draw an arrow staying on his guard while looking through the fields making sure he couldn't be ambushed. Slowly he made his way across the area to the edge of the gorge noticing a path seemed to span down the side of the cliff face. Before he checked that way though the young man said they came up from the gorge so he peered over the edge looking down but all he could see was rolling fog. With a shrug Link moved down the path that would lead him into the depths of the gorge.

Although what Link did not know was that the rolling fog was, in fact, a massive spider web.


	7. When Is It Okay To Kill?

**7\. When Is It Okay To Kill?...**

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 **Sorry for the long gaps in between updates, It's been hard lately between work and muse ^^; hope you enjoy.**

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As the wind blew, the strands of spider silk danced on the air currents like an eerie ballet accompanied by the undertone of whispering breezes making Link force himself to not shiver from the haunting sensation of this wide open place that was so devoid of anything but earth and spider silk. The entryway disappeared behind him as the tunnel arched and curved into the hard earth but there was no lack of light, if anything the whole area seemed to be illuminated by the light reflected off the spider silk itself. With the sounds of the wind drifting through the gorge very few sounds actually reached Link even though he was sure the spiders were skittering across the rocky walls below.

Link made his way further down the twisting path before coming to a sharp corner bending to his left deeper into earth while patches of webbing could easily be seen around the edges. Expecting an ambush Link readied his shield in front of him knowing that the space would be too tight to make reliable use of his bow. Carefully he walked around the corner with his sword prepped before jumping to the side facing directly down the path where a great, menacing... nothing was there. Link slowly lowered his shield confused but shrugged as he looked at the webbing that covered the walls of the tunnel, all of his training made him sure that he would've been attacked but it seemed that he was wrong.

"Better safe than sorry I guess..." Link commented under his breath as he took a step down the path when he heard a rustle from above him. "Fuck.."

Reacting as fast as he could Link raised his shield above him and braced it with his body ready for the impact but underestimating the weight as the blow took him to the ground. A screech rang off the walls as Link blinked the light from his eyes after hitting the ground and while he knew he was fighting spiders he hadn't quite known what to expect, the arachnid that he held away from his face by his shield was at least half the size of shield bigger than the shield and its long legs slid off the back side of the iron shield unable to get a grip while it's mouth dripped green slime and snapped at his face while it's red eyes glared at him fiercely like the creature was created specifically to kill him.

Another close snap shocked Link out of his trance and he let go of his sword and grabbed hold of his forearm before pushing hard with the shield as his voice rang through the passage way. With his adrenaline on high, Link lifted the spider from his body and to the side smashing it against the cave wall and splatter it against the hard stone beneath the thin layer of webbing before rolling away and grabbing his sword coming up in a crouch. The spider's legs twitched as they either stuck to the wall or laid upon the ground around the edges of the crimson and lime green splatter mark.

"Had to be fucking spiders..." Link muttered while wiping the green slime from his cheek knowing it was most likely venomous so he made sure to keep it away from his mouth before wiping it on the spider silk. With a silent realization Link looked at his shield and growled seeing it was now dripping with the goo of the spider he had slain, His gaze looked from the wall to his shield to the silk covered wall and almost pressed the face of the shield against it to try and wipe it off but stopped before it could touch it thinking it would be better to wait rather than testing the adhesive of the webbing.

Now that he knew they attacked him from any angle Link became more aware of the ceiling as he made is way down the dark path feeling it curve back around in the direction Link had entered the caves from. However as he went deeper Link expected less light but it became brighter instead and he could see why as he entered the next sector of the cave system. The area he had entered was a large chamber with the right hand side of the room forming a funnel of glittering white spider silk that seemed to lead across the gorge to the other side.

However he couldn't stare for too long as the rustling returned drawing Link's attention to the rest of the room finding spiders pouring out of the walls and filling the area. Probably ten spiders just like the others had filled the area around Link while four others dotted the wall but those ones were different from the ones that were on the floor. The ones on the wall had a set of longer legs that almost looked like antennae as they laid back along their bodies. Link didn't have much more time to study them though as the first spider on the ground attacked him leaping through the air at him.

This time Link was ready though as he brought his sword up in a sweep cutting through the spider and sending it flying back while staying alert. Although a sudden whistling sound caught his attention as he looked up toward the wall spiders. A wad of webbing was aimed straight for his face however it seemed to splatter a few feet to his right. His teleportation seemed to have saved him again as the spiders took a moment to find him while one was half covered in the particularly sticky webbing now stuck to the earth. The wall spiders were spinning balls of silk into their long legs and from what Link could tell were then throwing them at him like a catapult.

Judging from the trapped spider their webbing was particularly sticky and figured it would be best not to touch it. Now with that in mind Link shifted his position so he could keep the wall spiders in view as the rest of the spiders on the ground had collected themselves and two charged link while hissing loudly. Link raised his shield bashing one of them while sinking his sword forward into the other impaling it while the other flew back leaking green ichor from its broken face. Although another wall spider launched a web ball at the hylian while he was taking on the others. Reacting on a dime Link swung his sword arm toward the wall flinging the spider's corpse off the blade and into the ball making it burst and cocoon the body as it flew through the air to also ensnare the wall spider that had thrown the web.

"Heh how do you like it?" Link called as the wall spider fell from the wall with its heavy cargo becoming helpless on the ground. Next he redoubled his efforts dodging two more web balls with a roll to his right ending in a low crouch with his sword held back and prepared as three more of the spiders rushed him. However From this position he spun his body with a great amount of force slicing through all three of the spiders leaving four left to contend with. Or so he thought, two of them were escaping one through the funnel that link had no hope of following and the other through the pathway leading deeper into the gorge.

"Why the hell are you running?" Link called out feeling confused and a little angry as the last two spiders each circled him trying to pull his concentration from the wall. The tactic was simple so Link understood what they were trying to do and began to step back so he wouldn't have them behind him. Although the familiar whistling sound of the webbing made Link realize it didn't matter if he let them do it or not he'd got caught in the webbing either way.

An annoyed growl slipped past his teeth as he saw the corner he was backed into and quickly though about everything he had on him and whether or not it could help him retaliate against them or not when an idea came to mind. As the spiders flanked him from both sides and the wall spiders fired their webbing Link pushed off of the wall rolling along the ground just in time for the webbing to trap the two spiders together against the wall. In that same instance Link dropped the sword and shield and pull his bow from his shoulder and rapidly notch three arrows while aiming horizontally before finally letting the string go and listen to his arrows whistle briefly before piercing the three remaining wall spiders leaving them pierced their as their life slowly drained from their forms.

A low sigh slipped out as Link rubbed his shoulder feeling the strain of using a sword and shield so much compared to his normal hunting routines. As Link looked around he saw that the dead spiders were dissolving into black smoke like the bokoblins he had killed before. Though there were still the last two trapped in the webbing which Link looked over as he approached while fishing around in his bag. As he stood above the two screeching arachnids Link pulled a bomb from the bag before dropping it onto the mass of wiggling limbs and striking the igniter against the wick watching it start to burn. Link quickly yet casually gathered his sword and shield as he walked away from the resulting explosion that left bits of dissolving spider and scorch marks around the area.

"That was kind of satisfying, not sure what that says about me though." Link mused before setting his gear on his back again when he reached the opposite wall where the dissolving remains of the catapult spiders hung from his arrows. Reaching up Link gently grabbed hold of the arrow and tug it free before returning it to his quiver before moving on to the next repeating the process however as he reached the third he noticed a crack along the shaft and sighed. This time as he attempted to pull the arrow free it snapped making it unsalvageable. "Well can't expect them all to last..."

With a shrug Link pulled his sword and shield free again before heading toward the path that the one spider had traveled down. As before, Link expected to be ambushed down the line given that the entirety of the cave system that he could traverse had no branching paths. Though the further he traveled he began to notice a number of ore veins running through the earthen walls; gold, silver, iron, copper, even coal had patches and lines along the path.

"Guess it makes sense, this place had been a mine at some point, but where is everyone who was captured..." Link wondered aloud as he stayed on his guard following a downward spiral which lead him to a large room twice as big as the chamber above and most of it made up of glittering silver that curved along the walls seeming to encase a stone plate with a crystal in the center of it. While the strange webbing did surprise Link what he saw next was what dumbfounded him. A woman sat upon an ornate web throne her features cast in shadow while the heel of her foot rested on the floor with the spider's squashed head beneath it as its body began to dissolve.

"Wouldn't you like to know?~" A voice like velvet dripping with acid drifted through the air as Link made out a set of lime green eyes and the glint of green lips from a wicked smirk.

"I would actually, where are they and are you responsible for all of these pests?" Link responded to the woman as she slowly rose to her feet and stepped over the spider making it burst into black smoke before she walked into the light cast form the web wall behind her. For the most part her body was humanoid which caused Link to step back confused. However it was the green eyes. Lips, and partial skin tone that grabbed his attention seeing a dusky green shade of green covering her hands and up just past her elbows looking like long gloves. Her torso was covered in a black corset pressing her generous rack up to present it proudly along with her porcelain white skin. The corset extended up to create a collar and a gossamer cape which flowed down to her mid thigh while also connecting to a belt and cod-piece around her incredibly wide hips and crotch accentuating her femininity. Down along her long legs were similar black layers from her thighs to her mid calf before fading into the same dark green that covered her hands.

"Hehe, you're gonna have to ask nicer than that little one." The woman cooed as every step clicked against the stone making the cave itself punctuate her movement. Her features were beautiful nearly otherworldly as she twirled a strand of her wavy black hair making a faint green tone dance in the highlights. The widow's eyes seemed to rake over him like he was prey and to be honest it felt like he was as those lime green eyes pierced his core.

"I-I... Don't play games with me! Tell me where the villagers are!" Link stammered before his reaction shifted to anger and he held up his shield and held his sword level toward her. The widow simply chuckled as her arms came down to her sides and she seemed to shrink a few inches before stepping towards him again. This time no sound followed her steps while her strut drew Link's gaze to her hips. In that instant she was in front of him with a pleased sound escaping her throat as her fingers danced on the top edge of his shield slowly pushing it down with surprising strength that she made look effortless.

"Oh but I think you'll enjoy my games, they're hot, sticky, wet..." The words dripped like poison and Link felt their effect as his blood pulsed while the widow spun her web. Her green lips spread in a wide grin as she leaned close enough for Link to smell a sickly sweet yet enticing scent filling his head and quickening his breath. While Link's blushing face couldn't see much further than the widow's face and bust, a blade slowly extended from her right wrist just like the 'heels' had vanished from her feet.

~Get back!~ A familiar voice howled in Link's ear as a burst of wind like a tornado burst forth from Link throwing back the widow and clearing the area so that he could breathe without her sensual pheromones poisoning the air. After blinking away the haze Link saw Gale flitting in the air in front of him glaring at the seductress who growled as she stood once more growing a blade from her left wrist while the green bits of her body began to glow from her arms, legs, mouth, and eyes bathing her in an eerie limelight. Gale herself huffed obviously angered but her tiny frame began to waver back and forth in the air.

"Gale? Wh-What.. Are you alright?" Link rushed his words while cupping his hands under the wind spirit as she slowly dipped resting on her knees before looking back at him with an angry expression on her precious face.

~I hate women like her, they're hussies... I'll be okay just knock her out...~ The spirit nodded her tiny head before disappearing as flecks of green light flitting back to his bag. Using her power in such a raw form had to be a massive drain on her so Link understood her need to rest, but he was more confused about how he could see her without the Ethereal Stone. Whatever, mystery for another time, right now he had a powerful, angry, probably venomous Spider-Woman to deal with.

"I don't know what you did, but you'll pay for that." the woman's voice had gone from silk to stone as she glared Link down stepping closer as he saw a glowing green drop fall form the blades that had came form her arms. Her attack was fast, faster than fast, she closed the distance in the blink of an eye as she slammed the blade of her right arm towards his gut but his shield caught and deflected the blow while instinctively rolled his body to get out of her way. However his approach wasn't as fool-proof as he thought and his luck saved him once more as he heard the clang of steel before he saw his blade catch her other weapon. "Luck~"

Unlike the first time however her strength pushed him back hard enough to make his planted feet skid across the stone beneath him. With a deep breath he repositioned himself ready to anticipate her next blow but when he looked up she was gone. The area where she had been gone now had nothing aside from his tracks on the ground. Confused was putting Link's current situation lightly however he realized what was happening just before it happened again. After shifting his weight and position in an effort to jump back a green blur streamed straight down in front of him as he heard fabric tear and his eyes went wide. Rather than pushing her assault the Widow moved back from him in an elegant somersault before stopping a few feet away with a wicked smirk.

However, hat smirk transformed into a sneer.

"Insufferable brat..." The Widow hissed as Link checked his body and felt where she had struck him, his tunic had been torn but her blades had glanced off of his chain mail and the realization that he hadn't been poisoned made Link breathe a sigh of relief before focusing his gaze back on the Widow just as she zipped out of sight. His gaze followed her rapid movement as she jumped just before he heard a familiar whistling noise once again and quickly dived to the side avoiding a splattering ball of off green webbing. A smirk now played across Link's face already knowing how to dodge the web balls as his cerulean gaze met her emerald glare.

"What's wrong? You don't like when your prey fights back?!" Now that Link could tell her style he could plan for a counter attack. She made a dismissive grunt before holding her arm towards him and firing a stream of webbing just past his head anchoring it to the ground behind him. After a quick glance he chuckled lightly before looking back towards her.

"You can't even hit me no- oh shit!" Link's cocky chide ended as quickly as it began, the Widow was mere inches from his face to the point he could see the gleaming reflection of her face on the blade, and then he saw the throne and heard the impact a couple feet to his left. Link knew this was the effect of the magic now as he felt his energy waver a bit however he didn't have time to drop his guard as he heard the angry roar from the woman as she glared at him her gaze filled with hate as Link saw that she had broken the blade on her left arm and it was now dripping the glowing green venom.

"How could a brat like you learn magic?! You're nothing! Worthless!" Her roars echoed around the cave as she charged link seeping across him with her blade though Link barely managed to block it with his shield getting knocked back again as she opened up his guard with her savage strength. The blow alone made him stagger but she didn't rush him this time her approach was slow powerful and deliberate as she closed in on him making wide strikes in what seemed like an attempt to toss his shield away.

"I don't know either! It's really starting to scare me!" Link yelled back at the Widow but her eyes narrowed and she made a particularly more powerful strike finally flinging the iron shield away with a long dent in the metal.

"Magic scares you?! Magic!? Not the murderous arachnid that can move five times faster than you, hit five times harder than you, BUT YOUR FUCKING MAGIC POWER IS WHAT SCARES YOU!?" The widow roared as her breathing became more erratic and uncontrolled her voice alone drowning out the sound of his heavy shield clattering across the ground.

"Well... When you put it like that... I guess I'm scared of you too, a little." Admitted the hylian however that was the final straw for the Widow as she screeched and lunged for him driving the blade straight through his heart. However the moment she lunged Link jumped to the side to his shield as she stumbled her fierce eyes looking to Link as she moved to jump at him once more.

But she couldn't.

"You... How... How could you do this?!" This time Link had played her pride and anger to his advantage as she realized that he had lead her to fall into the web trap she had fired at him moments before. Now her legs were bound by the webbing and Link stayed out of her reach as he set his sword in its sheath before pulling his bow from his shoulder and readied it in his shield hand ready in case of some attack he hadn't seen coming.

"Underestimate your quarry and you become the prey, second rule of hunting." Link spoke low while reaching back to pull an arrow form his quiver, one stained black from one of the spiders he had shot.

"Tch, what's the first rule? Don't forget your bow?" The Widow spat at Link to which he shrugged while looking at her.

"Yeah actually that is the first rule. Now are you going to tell me where the others are or do I have to kill you for nothing but a rough fight and a dent in my brother's shield?" The question was earnest and in truth Link would probably end her here regardless, he couldn't let a monster like her continue what she had done her and every other spider in this gorge were a threat.

"Oh, is your brother one of them? I can't promise we haven't already eaten his sweet blonde self." The Widow snickered making Link shake his head in disgust. Although it was that moment that she swung her right arm toward Link. He reacted as quick as he saw it and fired his arrow into her arm sinking in along the blade. Once more the Widow's howls echoed through the chamber as she recoiled and clung to he arm which had swelled considerably and Link could see thin strings leaking from around the wound. It seemed he managed to keep from getting webbed once more even if it was at cost to her body.

"Tell me already!" Link shouted growing impatient as he drew another arrow and stared her down feeling annoyed and angry as his emotions stirred within him for reasons he couldn't quite understand. Sure he was trying to save them but he had no reason to, he didn't know them they probably couldn't help him. After a moment Link banished the thought unaware of the glowing triangle on his left hand hidden by his shield.

"You really think I'd give them up so easily?" The Widow grinned which made Link uneasy as he leveled an arrow at her heart and hoped her anatomy was human. Although with his focus on her he failed to notice the hulking presence behind him that had emerged from the web wall. It wasn't until Link had seen a thick green liquid fall from overhead landing on the Widow's legs as it melted away the webbing. In a panic Link released the arrow letting it fly straight through her heart with a wet thunk, at point blank range the arrow had no problem piercing through her sternum and heart.

"What the hell was that?" The words came free before Link could think as he quickly turned around while reaching for another arrow but what he saw froze him in his tracks. A massive golden scorpion stinger hung near the roof of the cave as it spanned back down the tail that was extended over the front of a gigantic armored scorpion that seemed to be laying on the edge of an opening in the chamber, as large as it was Link guessed it barely fit the scorpion. As Link made eye contact the creature began to laugh before speaking openly its voice gravelly and ancient as if it was tripping over sounds it would make in another language.

"That was hilarious, I have to admit it's good to be free." The monster said as it seemed to stretch, the armor plating rattling like a series of haunting bells. It's massive claws snapped creating a noticeable wave of force from where it had happened while Link stared unsure of what to do or even what it was talking about. The scorpion seemed to notice his confusion and made a gesture toward the corpse behind her. "She summoned and sealed me here long ago before the earth was split."

"As thanks I will spare you and give you the treasure that was sealed within this place long ago." The creature responded and the crystal in it's head gleamed as it reached into the webbing around it before pulling out a metal chest and dropping it before Link kicking up dust. Link was now particularly dumbfounded. "Now then I have an army to organize and a kingdom to destroy."

"W-Wait what are you talking about?! I'm looking for the villagers from Kakariko!" Link wasn't sure what to do or say taking in the information about what had happened as he looked at the chest, the scorpion, and the corpse that wasn't turning into black smoke.

"Human, I am Scorgoh, the lord of the Gohma species. I am granting you a pardon, take that filthy human, the treasure, and leave." The tired edge of the monster disappeared as the eight glowing eyes upon its face began to glow green casting an eerie green light from the crystal lodged in its forehead.

"H... Human?..." The words slipped from Link's lips as he looked at the woman behind him the spider features having faded leaving her covered in rags akin to an old robe. A green ichor stuck to her lips having escaped her body laying in a pool beside her next to the crimson one that had flowed from around the arrow impaling her heart. The realization of what he had just done hit him like a brick as he crashed to the ground, his bow and shield clattering away from him.

"No... No! NO!" The hylian's cries echoed through the room as he slammed his fist against the stone ignoring the pain while the grief burned his nerves. She wasn't a monster! SHE WASN'T ONE OF THEM!

He had killed a human woman who had probably gotten in over herself and tried to seal the damned scorpion after realizing she couldn't turn his power against them. Hot tears ran down Link's face as he felt torn in his heart, he had to kill her or she would've killed him right? RIGHT?!

What else could he have done?... Die so she would live?... Did he deserve to die now that he had taken the life of an innocent?... His throat choked his breath as felt the hot liquid reach his hand and his gaze slowly found the crimson pool through his tears. As he saw her it seemed as if time was recapturing the essence that had been corrupted and prolonged while her body had begin to dissolve into dust. Link could barely understand what was happening as even the blood on the floor dried to dust and fell away. His mind was moving a hundred miles a minute as he slowly sat up looking at the dust as it begin to catch on the breeze weaving through the spider silk and he arrow that had pierced her fell to the ground with a light clatter. Was he really a murderer? Or did he give peace to someone who hadn't been in control for a time longer than he could imagine...

After reaching over to grab the arrow he slipped it into his quiver while letting out a quaking breath. She would've killed him if he hadn't killed her there are just times when its kill or be killed...

Even while his body still shuddered he climbed to his feet and gathered his shield and bow setting them back on his person. His blue gaze shifted to the chest that the scorpion had dropped but now it seemed the monster was gone having crawled its way back through the hole it was stuck in. Link's eyes narrowed as he felt hatred boiling within him, it was that thing's fault he had to kill that he had to take someone's life, that he silenced everything she had ever been and ever would be. A breath akin to a growl slipped out as he went over to the chest kicking it open to see what looked like a clawed gauntlet roll back and forth.

"...The hell is this?" The blonde mused as he picked up the weapon turning it over to see a handle within and a spool of chain coiled behind the claw and under the plate of the gauntlet was etched words spelling out, as far as he could tell, 'Claw Shot'. With a shrug Link slid it down over his right hand and secured the strap before swinging it curiously but it seemed more like a bludgeon then any kind of effective claw weapon.

"This is treasure?..." After a moment of inspecting the item Link simply sighed and couldn't help but squeeze the handle balling his fist however, he happened on the trigger mechanism firing the claw out at an incredible pace as it sank into the cave wall before pulling Link over to it. Luckily enough he caught himself just before impact and braced with his other arm as he hit the wall. "Shit okay... This will be useful."

Before leaving the huge chamber he looked towards the hole that the scorpion traveled through and debated trying to shoot through but he thought better of it considering how far up shit creek he would be if he couldn't make it all the way across. With a silent shake of his head he headed back up the spiraling path he had came down in the first place. His eyes now clear but red as he entered the room scorched by his bomb didn't look any different including the walls and roof as he cautiously made his way to the middle of the room seeing the ore veins much more clearly now with the way the sun managed to refract through the webbing.

Now Link stood at a crossroads, he could leave and tell them he got as far as he could leaving the villagers to their death. This wasn't his problem to begin with so he didn't owe them anything but... He couldn't just leave innocent people to be killed if he could stop it form happening. A deep sigh escaped his lips as he stretched and rolled his shoulders.

On that note Link looked across the thin tunnel of spider silk that extended out over the gorge and connected to the other side which gave Link an idea, a bad one but an idea nonetheless. With his free hand he reached back into his bag and retrieve a bomb and the igniter snapping it to light the fuse before hurling the bomb as hard as he could into the funnel making it catch on the webbing getting stuck halfway through as the fuse burned down.

"Fire in the hole!" Link called out just as the bomb went off rupturing the silk tunnel and sending bits of spider thread everywhere as the explosion open up his way to the other side. Where a wall glittered with light, gold light, with a smirk Link raised the clawshot and fired across the gap watching it sail through the air before sinking into the soft metallic veins and he felt the pull instantly leaping off the edge off the stone and sailing through the air before the clawshot lost its grip and retracted to the gauntlet leaving Link to roll across the stone floor rather than lamming into the wall this time.

"Well that could have been done better..." Link muttered before rubbing the shoulder he had landed on as he stood up and looked around at the chamber he found himself in now. The entirety of the cave this time was covered in spider silk and along the wall was three columns and ten to fifteen rows of cylindrical cocoons. The site alone made his stomach turn as he ran over to one and pulled an arrow from his quiver stabbing it into the silk cutting down it. He was right, within the cocoon as a boy in farm clothes with silk strands sticking to him.

"Hey... Kid wake up..." Link said quiet but rushed while shaking the boy to wake him and slowly his eyes opened they were dull and lifeless as the boy reached up towards Link and grabbed his throat. Reacting on instinct the blonde punched the teen in the shoulder before stepping back causing the teen to move back with the force of the blow but he leaned back forward against slowly climbing out of the cocoon towards Link.

"What the hell what are you doing?" Link called out to the bot but he seemed too far gone as he made his way closer and that's when Link saw it, a black arachnid was attached to his head and glaring at Link. Somehow it had to be controlling the teen but Link couldn't tell how and it wasn't important, given how slow the teen was while being controlled Link raised the clawshot and aimed for the black spider firing and smashing the puppet master in an instant and making the teen fall to the web covered ground.

"That much is done... but the others..." Link shook his head trying to think before he finally got it. He bent down and picked up the child holding him over his shoulder before taking aim at the side of the gorge he had come from and again fired across to traverse the gap. As he reached the other side he laid the boy against the wall next to the way out. Link hoped that when he woke he'd go get the villagers but that seemed to be about all he could hope for now. Using the clawshot to travel back across Link to the pod chamber where he silently analyzed the pods.

With a shrug he finally walked up to one while pulling an arrow from his quiver and begin to poked it with his fingers feeling out the shape of those trapped within. Once he had a feel for their body Link plunged the arrow into the cocoon and into the spider controller within each case keeping them from controlling the villagers before cutting open their respective pods. After all was said and done Link had gone through four arrows but all the farmers were safe, for now at least,

"I hope the kid get the villagers down here soon otherwise it's gonna suck to get all of these captives across the gorge all solo." Link spoke aloud to himself looking to two of the paths that branched off from the current chamber. Link had no clue which path to take so he took the one on his right heading into the caves going even deeper into the earth. The walls began to lose their metallic streaks and the webbing fell away, Link could swear he had even began to walk up towards the surface and as he turned a corner he saw a light at the end of the tunnel.

"Well chose the wrong way..." His words echoed briefly off the walls around him as he continued on further until he walked out into the light blinking away the haze. The room he stood in now was about the same size as the Widow's chamber but the roof of it was exposed to the orange sky of dusk and covered in silk. Along the ground here numerous clusters of off-green eggs held together by nets of webbing. In the center of the room was a single arachnid like the catapult spiders from before but this one had a pincer like tail in addition to the two longer arms. The closer Link looked at it he saw that it was holding a makeshift bow fashioned from a branch and spider silk, beside it sat multiple wood arrows with one held notched in the bow itself.

"That's different..." His voice came out hushed as he snuck behind one of the egg cluster's staying low. If these were all more arachnids, the army that came from them would be immeasurable and that was something Link couldn't let that happen. As he stayed behind cover he reached into his bag grabbing a bomb and sticking it to the cluster before slowly moving on to the next and repeating the act until he had set up a total of ten bombs. After making his rounds Link was back at the entrance as he readied the clawshot and ignited the fuse on one more bomb using the sound of the igniter to catch the archer's attention making it quickly turn to fire at Link. However Link fired the claw shot in time to deflect the arrow as it grabbed a hold of the bow and wrenching it away from the archer-no-longer although Link heard the snap of the bow before it reached him. While the chain retracted and brought the shattered bow Link lobbed the lit bob to the spider before turning and running back down the hall just before it went off creating a chain reaction with the other bombs culminating in a massive blast that caused the pathway to cave in sealing it.

"Well... Should've put more thought into this..." Link muttered as he was sealed in the dark of the cave. He made his way back through the cave with his shield at the ready though nothing came as he reached the chamber where he had left the people. The fact that they were still there made him worry but it eased up as he saw that the teen was gone on the other side of the gorge and that gave him some sense of relief as he stowed away the fragments of the broken bow.

"As long as they all get out this won't be for nothing..." Declared the blonde as he started to move towards the path he hadn't taken further down into the tunnels. This time the path declined rather quickly almost like steps as he was wary of the of the green flickering light below. As Link finally reached the bottom of the path and leaned in the doorway seeing that the glow came from luminescent green thread that draped over everything within the massive throne room.

The great chamber looked like something out of an ornate tomb as bits sparkled with gold although the throne itself had been smashed to bits long ago, rather than rushing in Link took his time to try to scout the room from the doorway but he didn't see much else in the colossal chamber. Carefully he stepped in while readying his bow and an arrow looking around to see that most of the ceiling and the far wall was all just like the Widow's chamber. Although now that Link thought about it this was probably the other side to that silk wall however the tunnels were all in the ceiling rather than the wall telling Link that he was deeper underground than he had been in that chamber. However as he looked at the tunnels he saw green lights moving close and extremely fast.

"Shit!" The blonde cried as he ran and jumped away from the door barely getting enough distance before the monster fell where he had been standing, easily heavy enough to make the cavern rumble. Scorgoh stared him down as Link rolled to his feet and leveled his bow aiming it straight for one of his eyes, however it clinked harmlessly against his armored body while slowly stepping closer every step punctuated by the snap of his claws.

"I give you a chance to leave, I spare your life, and you proceed to wipe out my rations and destroy my army!?" The arachnid roared making its eyes, crystal and stinger glow with a lime green light. Link had no idea how to fight something like this considering it had armor armor and wasn't an incompetent skeleton. He couldn't use Gale and he had a feeling bombs wouldn't get him far with that armor which left him with the clawshot, his sword and shield.

"If it makes you feel any better I believe I am woefully under equipped for this fight." Link retorted falling back on his sarcasm for his utter lack of any gear that would make a difference in this battle. The irritation of the monster was palpable as it swung its giant claw at him, at this point Link jumped and blocked the claw with his shield getting knocked back along the stone floor with a wince as he watched Scorgoh move closer, thick globs of acid dripping form the end of its stinger and hissing as it touched the armor and stone alike. That gave Link an idea though, after switching his shield to his right arm he grabbed the clawshot and aim around the shield before letting it fly grabbing onto the side of the stinger.

"Puny ant, die like the rest of your ilk." Scorgoh rumbled as it drew its claw back again ready to strike, However Link rushed forward rather than staying on defense as he quickly took off the clawshot and secured it to his shield. Just as Scorgoh slammed its claw forward at Link he dropped to the ground sliding under the claw while hooking his shield in the claw. With the force from Scorgoh's attack it pulled the chain hard enough to rip the glowing stinger clean off its tail sending acid spraying through the air as it bathed Scorgoh's black armor and the stinger itself fell onto the monster's head sinking in a fair amount while knocking the crystal from its place in the black metal.

A harsh screech echoed from the arachnid as it thrashed and pulled at the plates ripping them from its body in rage sending the hissing chunks of metal everywhere. While sidestepping the frantic motions of the monster Link grabbed his gear again before putting some distance in between them using the moment to look around for a way to attack again as the acid finally ended and three of Scorgoh's eyes were left exposed as glowing red orbs. Before Link could even reach for his bow the monster turned and slammed it's tail into him sending Link flying back into one of the walls while knocking the breath out of him.

"D-Dammit that hurt." Link coughed struggling to stay up as Scorgoh closed in on him. Without a better idea Link aimed the clawshot but it was aimed high above Scorgoh in a pitiful excuse for aim as Link pulled the trigger. The sound of chains rushing filled the room before the clawshot sank into the webbing of the ceiling and pulled Link up unable to disconnect from the threads. Halfway up though Link saw the melted crack around where the stinger had pierced the plate of armor covering his head. While he couldn't disengage he could let go and so he did falling directly above Scorgoh.

"This is gonna hurt me a lot more than it's gonna hurt you!" Link called as he positioned his shield under him and slammed down into the stinger with all of his weigh splintering the glowing green bulb but forcing most of it straight through the metal plate shattering it and impaling Scorgoh's head. Before the acid could eat at him Link rolled off of following a short distance to the ground heaving, slowly Scorgoh's corpse began to deteriorate fading into black smoke as a green flame floated up and into the hanging claw shot making it fall next to Link engulfed in green flame.

"...I ain't touching that." Link mumbled while watching the flames flow into the item and at first it looked like it was melting but it was morphing shifting it's shape to a more appropriate one for the power that had now become imbued into it. Now rather than a gauntlet guard there was a pseudo sleeve in the style of a web while the claws had been replaced by a thin wicked looking tri-blade.

"Demonic gear, why not..." Link sighed while grabbing it and slowly climbing to his feet watching as the webbing started to dissolve once Scorgoh was gone. That must have meant that it was done, the people were safe and this spider nightmare was over. With a weak smile Link put away the spidershot and shield before beginning to make his way back toward the entrance however a glint caught his attention and made him stop. Under some of the rubble and discarded metal was the large, sliver-like crystal that had been stuck in Scorgoh's armor. As Link picked it up it felt familiar to him for some reason and the etched crystal seemed more like glass but it didn't matter right now, he needed sleep badly.

With the crystal tucked in his bag Link began the climb back towards the cocoon chamber slowly becoming more tired and weak the further he got until he collapsed in the entryway to the cocoon room. With a trembling hand he reached down pulling up his tunic to see that a shard of the stinger had ate through a small bit of his chain-mail and had stuck into his skin. The veins around the wound pulsed as the venom traveled and Link coughed sending up a cloud of dust before his vision went black.

"well... Fuck..."


	8. No Rest for the Wicked

**8\. No Rest for the Wicked... or Was it Weary?**

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 **So I guess long update times are just gonna be kinda standard ^^; sorry about that. Also wanna give a special shout out to CNelson117 for reviewing and providing input, you rock man.**

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When Link's eyes opened next his vision was blurry however he knew where he was but still had no idea where 'it' was. The scent of burnt wood hung on the air somewhere between a fireplace and a scorched forest. The feel of something warm and soft laid beneath his head while he felt fingers brushing through his hair and warmth radiated from every instance of contact. Link's hearing came through next as the sound of a woman's hum filled the air, a steady tune with one note as a base that alternated with a few lower notes then a string of higher notes and rocking back and forth, the closest he could describe it would be a lullaby played with a drum.

Finally, the blonde's vision cleared and he saw the flame kissed woman from his dream before leaning over him and running her fingers through his hair while he rested. Her red painted lips spread into a smile when her crimson eyes met is blue and she touched a finger to his lips. "Wisdom is searching but she is blind."

The words were cryptic to say the least but before he could say anything the woman leaned down to kiss him. The act made his eyes widen and time seemed frozen for that moment. He could see her flawless gold skin, ruby red hair, gold paint over her eyelids. Although her image was extremely enchanting he saw that the forest that had once surrounded the clearing was charred black and the sky above was black and gray from the smoke that had blotted out the heavens.

Then she, like the fire, devoured his breath...

~X~

Once more, Link's eyes shot open as his body shot up sitting upright while he sucked in a breath to fill his lungs again. However, that sudden action made Link cry out in pain and his hand shot over grabbing his left side where he felt bandages wrapped around his torso covering a particularly sensitive wound that under normal circumstances would've torn open again.

"Wha?... What the hell happened?..." The blonde's breath came in ragged bouts between the ache of his body, the pain of his wound, and the over all fatigue of his body. Though his reverie was at an end the moment Rodana came running through the door with a worried look painted across her features. That look made him feel so much; guilt, worry, sorrow, he knew that look from his mother.

"Link what is it? What hurts?" Her voice came out with a tremble as she reached his side but they were tempered by a steady tone as she touched his side studying the wound before her brown eyes met his blue. That quiet resolve silenced him as he stared into her eyes until a faint blush colored the girl's olive skin. "Link?..."

"Oh s-sorry... I... I guess I just say up too quick... Sorry to worry you..." Link said quietly before looking down at his side. Rodana nodded slightly while slowly releasing a breath she had been holding looking down at it as well. "I can't remember what happened."

"You saved us..." The words slipped out with a smile while Rodana brushed her dark hair behind her ear and gently moved Link's heand away from the wound her tender touch grazing over the area making Link wince faintly but only enough that he would notice it.

"When that man came out screaming I ran for my grandfather... He has looked over Kakariko for so long I thought he would know what was going on. When we came out and the man told him a youth clad in green had gone into the gorge my grandfather seemed to calm down and we gathered our herbs just as the young boy you saved ran into the village calling for help. After he told grandfather everything he coordinated everyone and they went into the gorge to save the others..." Rodana's voice trailed off as the memories danced behind her eyes. "After everyone had been safely checked on grandfather took supplies with him and sat beside the spring outside. I didn't understand what he was doing and almost ran into the gorge but... the spring erupted with light and when it was gone you were floating there... You were badly poisoned, a piece of something was lodged in your side and we weren't sure if you were going to make it."

As she told the story bits came back to him, saving the boy, fighting the arachnid, coming back to find the people gone, and seeing the wound he had suffered. Reflexively Link reached toward the wound again touching her hand although the hylain's gaze moved to the table at his side where a metal tray sat with medical supplies including gauze, alcohol, thread, needle, and the gold fragment of Scorgoh's stinger. Link's gaze narrowed in a faint glare and his hand tightened slightly causing a soft gasp from the girl beside him which drew his gaze back to her. Rodana's face was blushing again and looking down, confused Link followed her line of sight to see that he was holding her hand, firm but not harmful.

"Oh sorry." The blonde said quickly letting go with a nervous smile, while she didn't say anything Rodana simply smiled and nodded her head as her hand returned to her lap. While the moment was cute and innocent a sudden deep cough shattered it turning both youth's attention to the door where a tall man stood with similar olive skin and long alabaster hair stood.

"Now I'm not one to intrude on young love but I don't believe our young hero here is up to any sort of rigorous activity." The older man chided nonchalantly which instantly turned Rodana beet red and made her stand bolt upright.

"I-It isn't anyt-thing l-like th-that!" The girl sputtered as her blush even reached her ears which made the older man smile big obviously just teasing her.

"Now now no need to get flustered, it's not everyday we get a hero in these parts, who wouldn't try to snatch him up?" The man continued while striding along the room and guiding Rodana to the side so he could sit in a small chair beside the desk and bed.

"for Hylia's sake, can't you act like a normal grandfather?" Rodana chastised him not giving him an answer to his teasing. It seemed that Link's suspicion was confirmed as she addressed her grandfather though their relationship was somewhat abnormal.

"Hm... I could, but no, it's no fun, now leave so I can check on Link now that he has woken up." The man ushered tapped the back of his hand against her arm which earned him a glare from the girl as she spun on her heel and exited the room making the man smile and shake his head. "So easy to mess with, so innocent."

Link watched the man as he went over the tools at his side briefly before leaning over Link, the action made him freeze but he relaxed once he felt and heard the gauze being unwrapped from his torso. After a few more moments Link's torso was be exposed with a patch over the tender area while faint lines spread out form it reminding him of the dark lines that had been there in his memory. With a gentle but firm touch the elderly man slowly peeled the patch from the hylian's skin causing him to wince while the wound was exposed. The faint lines lead to what looked like a stitched spiral pattern where the wound had been closed after the fragment had been taken out from what Link could tell.

"Hm... healing well enough, the bruising is gone and your blood just needs to flush your veins then they'll look normal again. How do you feel?" The man asked as his eyes met Link's, they held a certain spark, like they had seen so much that Link couldn't fathom his experiences.

"I... I feel alright just really sore." The blonde answered looking down at the wound again. "Nothing else really out of place."

"That's good, nothing strange means the poison has been cured, just hard to tell without any feedback from the victim." The man said with a light smile before turning to pick up the gold shard and hold it out to Link. "Scorgoh got you good but considering you walked away, you probably did better."

"Wait you know it's name?" Link asked remembering that the arachnid had said it had been trapped for ages.

"Of course, I've known it's legend since I was a boy but as long as he was trapped I never saw any reason to worry the people who live here, why worry generations of children about a possibility they may never see?" the man said and while Link understood he still felt something could have been done to make it safer. "That gorge had only opened a few days ago and I had forbidden anyone from working the fields or going into it. However, people are won't to give up their livelihood and went regardless."

"Guess it was a good thing I came through when I did, no one else was hurt right?" The blonde asked while relaxing against the headboard.

"That is correct on both counts, Though I had a feeling if anything went wrong you'd find your way here Link." The old man responded with a knowing smile that Link wouldn't see as he dabbed a cloth in alcohol before dabbing it against the wound making him hiss slightly. "I suppose you wouldn't recall but my name is Renado and I knew you long ago, or more accurately another you."

"Wait what? What are you talking about?" Link's shot to the man confused as he cleaned his wound before applying another patch of gauze and leaving it be.

"I have been around a long time, I say it's because of a good diet and exercise, and I've experienced many things. Including the time of the Hero of Twilight, Ordona's Champion." While Link had no concrete reason to believe him it was what the old man had called the hero, Ordona was the name of the spirit which protected Ordon, and wasn't the name of the province itself.

"You know about Ordona, guess that's enough reason to listen..." Link said quietly trying to understand that he was the descendant of some hero. "What did you mean when you said I'd find my way here?"

"Well to put it simply, you have always ended up in the right place when people were in trouble and when I heard that young man say a youth clad in green ran in to face the danger I knew it couldn't be anyone other than you." The man responded in kind before handing him the gold fragment.

"But I'm no hero... I'm not fearless or unstoppable... I almost died down there if it hadn't been for you, Rodana, and... I'm guessing the spirit which resides in this province, Eldin?" Link responded without meeting his gaze but accepting the stinger shard.

"Ah so she told you before I got here, yes Eldin brought you to the spring after you had passed out it seems. Also two quotes spring to mind when you said those words," Renado spoke as he stood up and moved over to a dresser that sat beside the desk and began to pull out Link's clothing and his bag. "Bravery isn't acting without fear, bravery is acting despite your fear, and you don't need a reason to help someone."

The words echoed in Link and he touched his chest feeling as if a cord had been struck within him. He had never felt like a hero, he had never had the drive to go join the royal army or fight for them. So why was it now that he was out traveling, searching for a way to find his brother that he was willingly diving into danger to help people he didn't know. As those thoughts raced across his mind Renado stood next to him and placed his hand on Link's shoulder.

"You're young and while I may say you don't need to run head first into your destiny, it seems destiny has it's way of finding you, so be careful and don't forget that fear keeps you moving and alive." The man's words sank into the blonde as he stared at his lap, even the thought that he could be related in any way to a hero of the past just seemed wrong but it seemed fate would tell. After a quiet moment Link nodded before moving the blankets aside.

"Got it... Thank you Renado." The words felt like an echo as they left his lips and the older man smiled quietly before setting a red potion in his hand. Link stared it briefly before looking up at him and Renado nodded as he began to make his way toward the door.

"An empty bottle rolled out of your bag while you were unconscious, I thought it best to give you something to help you along." The medicine man said in good faith before leaving the room so that Link had privacy to get dressed although that thought instantly made his eyes narrow.

"Why do I keep ending up in situations where I'm shirtless around older men..." Link muttered under his breath to himself knowing better than to ever let his brother know that this thing had happened twice now. Silently Link drank the red potion tasting berry in the more watery elixir compared to the blue one, he flet like he had more energy but his pain hadn't completely subsided.

"At least Rodana was around this time, she's cute..." Link spoke quietly while pulling his pants on leaning back against the dresser for support while the moment they shared hung in his mind. After a faint blush had formed on the hylian's face he let out a sigh and grabbed his shirt and tunic then pulled them on over his head before a thought occurred to him and he reached down to touch his side where there should be a hole but there was nothing but the faintest line of stitching. The thought of Rodana fixing it for him brought a light feeling to his heart but that was for later, he was keenly aware that his chain-mail was missing.

Knowing that one or both of them had... tended to him while he was out Link grabbed his bag and hat before he made his way over to the door to go ask Renado or Rodana where it was. As he turned the handle and stepped out into the hall way he saw multiple doors on the same side of the hall as his spanning the length of the hall reminding him of an inn. That thought was then reinforced as he heard people talking downstairs along with the faint thunks of mugs hitting wood, guess that explained why the bed was so nice.

As he made his way down the hall he could see that one side was mostly open with a rail before continuing further with more doors like the side he was on. As he reached the rail Link could see what he thought looked like a bar and a lobby which wasn't surprising it was just kind of large for an inn. Although from the rail Link saw Renado go into a room opposite of the desk which he assumed was his area of the building. Link took the steps slow not sure of his coordination though he didn't fall his body still felt sore as the downward motion sparked small jolts of pain. After reaching the floor Link glanced around seeing people eating around the bar area a few with bandages but none looking any worse for wear than he did. A faint smile cracked across his face before he turned to duck into Renado's room not wanting to bring attention to himself while a small bell rang atop the door.

"Hello welcome to The Apothecary how can I- oh, out of bed already?" Renado began his greeting after he heard the bell but transitioned as he saw link in front of him clad in green. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised."

"Yeah I wanted to ask around town about something, also I noticed my chain-mail wasn't with the rest of my things." Link said evenly not trying to sound accusing even if the question came off that way.

"Ah yes, it was damaged like your clothes were, I had sent it with a Goron friend of mine, he does exquisite metal work and should have it back here by the end of the day." The elderly man responded with a smile, Link appreciated it even if he was without his gear and smiled back nodding.

"Ah right guess it was damaged too... Thank you I hadn't thought of getting it fixed." Link replied while rubbing the back of his head a bit embarrassed by the kind gesture although Renado didn't seem to mind in the slightest.

"What do you plan to do next?" The elder man inquired while leaning back against his counter.

"I'm probably heading to Solvale next, I need to get to Castle Town and I heard that someone there can get me past the blockade." Link said quietly tired from just thinking about the journey. "Um is Rodana around? I wanted to thank her first."

"Ah, Magus, yes he can probably get you in but you'll have to do something for him. He is a very quid-pro-quo sort of person." Renado mused quietly before glancing out toward the town beyond his glass window. "Well it seems she stormed out while I was checking on you so she probably went to see Baris at the emporium, careful with your wound."

Link bowed his head with a quick word of thanks before Renado got back to his herbs and mixtures and then proceeded to make his way out still keeping his head low so he didn't draw attention from the patrons. As he slipped out of the front door his gaze carried along the street as he got his bearings slowly recognizing where he was from Rodana's tour earlier. As he made his way down the road toward the emporium he saw that the usual street life was active with people ducking in and out of shops along the way. Something about everyone just going right back to their normal lives after a crisis both bothered and amused Link, bothered by their indifference but amused that they bounced back.

A few stores seemed normal enough, clothing, ironworks, jewelry, it seemed like they had a shop for anything someone could want although none of them particularly interested him. Until he saw a small shop at the end of a short road off the main street, the road had few people on it and they didn't seem too interested in the building. Thinking it was strange, Link turned down the road following it to the shop until he could make out the sign over the door.

"'Curios and Curioser'? Well I appreciate the pun." Link mused seeing the sign was imprinted with gold with purple swirls spanning out from it. The front of the store was rather unassuming with a simple wooden door, clay walls, and purple diamond shaped windows. With a shrug he opened the door stepping inside the dimly lit store.

"Ah welcome welcome how may I help you sir?" A voice reached him from his right where a counter stood built into the front wall of the shop. Link almost jumped as he saw a man with a wide grin black hair and very tan skin.

"H-hi I'm just look-" Link began but was quickly cut off by the shop keep.

"Look at this! Yes! Heh, heh. Combination hookah and coffee maker, also makes julienne fries. Will not break!" The man said quickly grabbing a golden object from the shelf behind him that had a long shaft, a wide spherical base, and a tube as he began to tap it against the counter.

"Will not-" The merchant was then silenced as the spherical part came loos bouncing on the table once before falling behind the counter. "It broke..."

"It's fine really I just wanted to see what your shop is like." Link responded quickly so he could get a word in before the shopkeep continued on again.

"Oh well I stock unique items though there isn't much of a market for it, go ahead and look to your heart's content." The man informed Link matter-of-factly before bending down to throw away the object he had leaving Link to wander the store. Each item he saw had a small tag beside it with a description though most were non-sensical.

On the wall opposite the counter an ornate mirror hand with an off-blue stone making up its composition. Link gently lifted the mirror from the wall turning it over to see the back which was decorated with rings and wavy fire like patterns between each ring. On the tag beside its placement it read: 'The mirror of a Goddess. One of five.' While it was impressive Link couldn't imagine something so ordinary belonging to a god so he returned it to its place.

Next in the middle of a display set along the center of the room Link found a small red and white ball with only a black strip dividing the two halves and encircling a small white circle at the front of the sphere. It felt rather light and almost hollow in his grasp as he turned it over and set it down before reading this item's tag: 'used to hold monsters. Caution advised.' Link couldn't begin to fathom how a monster could fit within such a small ball so he shook his head and moved further down the shelf.

Near the edge was what looked like a scarf folded over, it had a simple rectangular pattern ending in a tassel while being solid white. It felt warm to the touch and smooth but not like any material he had ever felt before. As he set it back the tag read: 'Dragon scale scarf. Beware of pink fire breathing monsters.' Link couldn't help but crack a grin at the absurd line before moving along.

On the back wall a massive weapon caught his attention and Link stood staring at it for a minute. Half hanging from the wall and half propped against it the massive blade was thick with and edge running down one side which abruptly turned to create the top edge leading to the back of the blade, the handle seemed to be criss-crossed leather with a metal pommel while the guard had a gold design with swirls spanning he width of it. Although what confused Link were the two holes set just above the base of the blade in a vertical orientation, if he didn't know any better they were some way to hook the massive weapon onto the wielder rather than using a sheathe. The blade itself made him grin thinking of his brother wielding such an unusable thing like a toothpick. As Link leaned in he saw its tag on the wall beside it: '50,000 rupees? Not interested...' the price alone made Link take a step back before he agreed with it.

After that Link promptly turned on his heel heading back toward the door as it opened and two women entered. The first was roughly half a head shorter than himself and wore a simple off white robe with the hood up which was relatively common in these parts since they protected from the sun and dust on the winds, from what he could tell the girl had fair skin flawless features and locks of blonde hair bordering her face beneath the robe's hood. The second was roughly a head taller than her and a wore a similar robe in blue with red markings dipping in between the folds of fabric, the woman however had her hood down revealing a striking face with silver hair pulled back into a low pony tail. Along with her striking features she had three red dots under her left eye which Link couldn't tell if they were tattoos or some kind of paint.

Dumbfounded Link stood there as the shorter woman walked up to him with a smile before pulling down her hood, in the moment that she did Link was aware that the shopkeeper was tinkering in the back judging from the sounds coming from the curtain that was behind the counter. The young woman was beautiful in a very classical sense as Link saw her golden blonde hair and her perfect sapphire eyes looked into his own like a mirror.

"Excuse me, where are the books?" Her voice came out like silk while her pink lips moved as she spoke.

"U-Um right back here." Link answered after a moment as he collected his thoughts and he stepped back leading them to the back corner where he had scene a book display though none had really interested him. The young woman followed him until he reached the location where she slipped past him with a smile across her lips.

"No... It's not here." The young woman sighed while the older woman leaned back against the center display. The blonde woman's mirth drained and a pout sat on her lips before turning back to him and offering a small smile. "Is there any chance you'd be willing to help me find a book?"

"I don't actually work here actual-" Link began before the blonde cut him off.

"Oh no no, I knew that you don't look the type, no offense, I've been coming to Kakariko a few times in the past week looking for a specific book but no where seems to have it so I would like to commission your services." The woman explained while reaching out to hold Link's hand as her cheery demeanor returned.

"I... Maybe I can help, where is it supposed to be?" Link asked while a faint blush came over his face from being approached by such a beauty.

"PERFECT! It's supposedly up in Dragon's Keep it overlooks the crater of Death Mountain~" the blonde said happily while the older woman shook her head with a sigh.

"I'm sorry but unless you're Princess Zelda and can get me into Castle Town without any problem than it's not happening." Link responded before turning away from the hylian and began to make his way for the exit however a firm grip shot out and caught a hold of his wrist. As Link stopped he slowly looked back at the young woman who was hastily looking around the store before pulling him back.

"Shhh... As a matter of fact I am." She whispered and before Link could scoff and walk back out she pulled her robe aside showing her attire beneath. She was clad in white material that looked similar to silk with golden accents such as her belt. "This is Impa, my bodyguard."

"How do you do." The silver haired woman finally spoke, deep and powerful as expected from her stature while waving her hand in a dismissive hello leaving Link confused about why such people would Kakariko.

"Is the book really that important?" Link questioned looking between them both.

"Yes." "No." The women answered in unison causing Zelda to stare at Impa with a slight glare. "The book holds knowledge about my family line which I need in order to find something lost to me."

"So if I get you that book you'll take me to Castle Town?" Link asked so he could clarify the terms of the deal while looking to Impa who was just as dismissive, seeing no worth in the princess's desire for the book.

"That's right, it's a promise." Zelda said happily before leaning in to peck his cheek. Impa rolled her eyes and sighed while moving around to head back outside allowing Link to see a handle sticking out of her robe and over her shoulder.

"I-I-I You got it..." Link answered unused to attention from the fairer sex while Zelda giggled again and began to make her way out of the store with Link's hand in hers pulling him along.

"Hehe excellent!" She laughed seeming genuinely happy as they passed the shopkeep who silently watched them both ho out the door. Once the door closed he stood there for a moment and shrugged before lighting up the hookah to take a drag. Once outside the blonde woman stopped beside Impa who had been waiting for her charge although the momentum from being pulled swung Link forward slightly putting him in front of them towards the street.

"Then I'll get on that right away, will you be here in Kakariko?" Link asked still a bit stunned by meeting the princess. As he turned to head down the short road.

"Yes that's right we will be here waiting for you." Zelda replied with a big smile on her face. Link responded in kind with a smile while waving bye to her before running down the road to the main street.

However what Link didn't see was that innocent smile twist into a smirk that was followed by a haughty chuckle. "Fool, so easily manipulated."

As Link stepped out into the street he saw that business was still booming and took a moment to look up at the volcano he had just promised to climb. With a deep sigh he took his hat from his pocket and slip it on his head. "I can't believe what I just agreed to..."

"Hey hero!" A somewhat familiar, feminine, voice rang out from the opposite direction he was facing and as he turned a hand slipped past his neck and pulled him in filling his vision with blonde hair and tan skin. In that moment Link had no idea what was happening but he felt her warm lips on his and slowly kissed back leaning into the woman's embrace. The woman held the kiss for a long moment making Link's face red while she stole his first kiss. As the two slowly parted Link saw her come into focus and it was none other than Cindy with a large grin on her face. "You are of age right? Hehe"

"Cindy?.. Y-Yeah I am... What was that?" Link asked dumbfound by the beauty who had just liplocked him out of nowhere.

"Just a thank you for what you did for the town, take care of yourself." The woman responded with a playful wink stroking her cheek before moving along with the reigns to a large gold haired horse in her other hand.

Link stared after her for a few moments before he finally let out his breath and looking back to the mountain before heading towards it. "Stupid volcano..."


	9. Through the Fire and the Flames

**9\. Through the Fire and the Flames**

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 **Shout out to Magus Neon, Cnelson117, and darkman101 for reviewing and providing input, I appreciate your time and effort. Also for the people who are here for that M rating, the next chapter will have it.**

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With every step Link took as he trekked the path up Death Mountain, his thoughts cursed the situation he was currently wrapped up in. Climbing an active volcano to get a book from a castle which he assumed was filled with dragons if the name was anything to go by so that he could get help from the princess to find his brother.

"Ganondorf better appreciate the pain in the ass this has been." Link muttered as he began to feel the heat rolling off the volcano. The path he was on seemed to be carved from the stone leaving the walls at least 20 feet high on both sides. If nothing else this location was easily defensible even if there wasn't much to see aside from a set of steel steps laid into the path further a head next to a steep ramp. Although before he could question it a boulder rolled past him and up the slope with ease before uncurling and revealing the boulder was a Goron.

"Hey brudda didn't mean to rush by, you okay?" The Goron called over to Link with a worried look. To Link the Goron didn't have many distinguishing traits besides that his back seemed grayer than most like coarse stone.

"Yeah I'm alright, it's no problem." Link waved towards the Goron with a light smile.

"Alright good on ya brudda, have a safe climb to Goron City." The Goron in question grinned and wished Link a safe journey before curling up again and continuing up the path with great speed. Link couldn't help but chuckle a bit under his breath finding the Goron entertaining and rather hospitable despite that Link didn't know him. Although he had to admit, Link was just the slightest bit jealous of their mode of transportation it would make this climb so much easier.

After passing through a a large area filled with steam geysers Link found himself at a split in the road, in the cliff before him there were directions were etched into the stone telling him to the left was the way toward Goron City and the famed Goron Hotsprings. On the right hand path he could barely make out Highpeak crossed out with 'Warning! Dragon's dwell here!" etched under it. Link silently read that again and then once more.

"Bitch sent me somewhere infested with dragons..." The hylian muttered under his breath before looking at the path to his left again, it looked fairly simple and even, the path to his right however began to slope upward and looked more rugged, like the stonework hadn't been kept up for years.

A long deep sigh escaped his lips as he tilted his head back staring up the cliff face and the smoke that filled the sky above the volcano. First it was the village, then a spider god, now a volcano filled with dragons... "Mom is gonna kill me if I make it back..."

"Well that doesn't sound very nice." A deep voice came from beside Link making him turn so quick he almost got whiplash as he saw another Goron that gave him a wide grin. "Sorry to eavesdrop, I was about to ask if you were okay before you spoke."'

"Oh, it's alright sorry to worry you, I'm heading up toward Dragon's Keep or Highpeak, whatever its called." Link explained with an embarrassed smile however the Goron's grin faded and was replaced with a very worried look now as his deep blue eyes raked over Link. At this moment Link noticed a canvas backpack on the Goron's back and a tool belt over his shoulder with multiple hammers and tongs slotted along the black leather.

"That isn't a good idea, You'll end up roasted before you step foot inside." The stone-kin said quietly after appraising Link's condition.

"Hey I'm not exactly a klutz I can get in before a dragon sees me." Link declared feeling like the Goron's words were a sleight.

"No no, you misunderstand, Dragon's Keep is surrounded by lava flows, the heat will immolate you in no time flat." The Goron explained to Link as his bravado fell away and his gaze drifted to the ground now at a loss. How was he supposed to get a book from a castle that in all realty should have burned up the book. "Hold on, are you Link by chance?"

"Y-Yeah, that's me." The blonde answered confused looking at the Goron whose face quickly brightened up.

"In that case I have a delivery for you." The Goron replied before swinging his ba down from his shoulder and flipped the top open moments before producing a sheen of glittering metal which Link instantly recognized.

"My chain-mail." Link said with a faint smile as he accepted it from the Goron seeing that it was flawless, hell it almost looked better than before like all the metal rings were brand new.

"Heh why yes Renado asked if I would repair this armor for a hero that had saved Kakariko from the spiders and far be it for me to refuse the opportunity to aid a young hero." The Goron told Link as the boy lifted off his Tunic and slipped the chain-mail back on over shirt fitting like a glove before returning his green tunic to it's proper position.

"Thank you, it means a lot to me, I didn't catch your name mister?..." Link inquired wanting to use his name since he was kind enough to repair the gear that, for all intents and purposes, was his fault for damaging.

"Oh I am Daroos, happy to make your acquaintance young hero." The Goron happily replied before bowing which brought a faint shade of red to Link's face.

"N-No just Link, please." The flustered blonde caught the Goron's arm and stood him back up.

"Of course of course if you insist." Daroos said with a great deal of mirth about him however he seemed to become rather pensive before reaching into his bag again searching for something before producing a bottle to Link.

"What is this?..." Link asked curious as he accepted the bottle and tilted it around seeing that a thick pale blue substance resided within.

"To make a long story short, it's a Heat Resistance potion, it will allow you to reach Dragon's Keep." Daroos explained to Link as he swung his bag back up on his back.

"Wow that's awesome! But I don't have any money on me right now I'll pay you back for this though I swe-" Link began to promise but was swiftly cut off by the booming voice of the so far soft-spoken Goron.

"NO. It's a gift for what you did, I've become very fond of Kakriko and it's people so I don't want you to feel that you owe me a single rupee for my help. Be wary though the potion will only last until nightfall if you reach Dragon's Keep quickly, be out by then." Daroos said with a voice like the most resolute steel. Link could never have expected this and didn't know what to say so he bowed his head silently before feeling a heavy hand on his shoulder. "Be safe, Renado didn't stitch ya up for nothing."

"I will be, hopefully I can be in and out." Link answered the Goron as Daroos nodded and began to head down the mountain.

"Oh and their war with the Lizard-kin should distract them from you, probably." The Goron called out with his parting words but it only made Link's eyes widen. Great, now there's a gods damned war going on too! Link's eyes slowly narrowed before he turned to head along the path to Dragon's Keep.

"Why not!" The blonde yelled out to the volcano as he stomped his way along the path which eventually rose from the ground becoming ledge as he climbed further up. Although his journey ended not long after he had started his ascent, right when he ran out of road. It seemed like a boulder had fallen and wiped the path a head of him from the face of the volcano.

"None of this is going to be easy... Is it?" Link silently questioned as he began to look along the cliff both ahead and above him. The sheer stone left little for Link to use as a hand-hold let alone anything more. As his blue eyes continued along the ridge he spotted a fairly large stone that sat over the opposite side of the chasm in front of him. A faint scratching sound then reached his ears and Link swiftly pulled his sword while pressing his back to the cliff looking back and forth for the sound but nothing was there. The sound was there again but now it was from below, carefully Link peered over the edge when the sound came again now behind him. It was then that he could tell it was coming from his bag. After sheathing his blade he quietly opened his bag looking inside when a flash of green and black shot out latching onto his right hand and wrist.

"Ah what the hell!?" Link yelled and flicked his arm trying to get it off before realizing that it was the hookshot, or what became of the hookshot. It now had a slightly skeletal and spider theme looking more like a cage around his fist as he turned it over looking at it as the green flickered slightly. The bladed hook from before was now replaced with a three pronged blade and was far thinner looking like it was meant to pierce. It didn't feel like it was doing anything to him so he wasn't sure if he could consider it harmful, though he didn't really have the time to consider that. After Link secured his bag once more he took aim at the stone with the spidershot before tensing his fist and a green thread shot out and punched its way through the anchor with surprising ease.

"Damn... Got more punch than it seems."Link quietly looked at the taut spider silk line that attached to the stone and prepared to use it to swing over but just before he did, a tingling shot up his arm stopping him just in time before the rock beneath the stone gave way sending the huge stone falling as well. The sight made Link's heart jump scared that he'd be pulled down along with it but the line of spider silk retracted the blade like it was nothing leaving the stone to crash far below.

"Well... That's going to be so useful." Link mused as his gaze found its way to the cliff again. This time he felt like he was seeing it clearer, the spots that wouldn't support his weight, spots that were porous and would break away then he saw a section just short of the path. At this point beggars can't be choosers so he leveled his arm and shot at the spot where the blade sank into the cliff with a solid thunk. After a couple of test pulls to make sure it was stable Link ran for the cliff and jump swinging down along the face of the cliff. This moment was probably his most frightening experience he had willingly chose to take but at the same time his heart was beating so hard he could hear it in his ears. Once he was close enough the hook came free from the cliff allowing his momentum to launch him over onto the other side of the path safely, albeit shaken up a bit.

"Wh-Whoa! Damn... That was awesome! Not doing it again but it was awesome." Link exclaimed with a grin as he looked back over the gap with a sigh. Now that he had survived his first near-death experience of the day he raced along the ledge continuing up the cliff feeling the air become thinner and hotter. Before long it had grown darker but it wasn't because it was late, it was the smoke blacking out so much of the sky.

"Guess it's time, down the hatch." Link breathed out while getting the potion from his pocket and opening it. He expected the same off-taste as before but when the chilly substance touched his tongue it was sweet, like some kind of berry. Now that it didn't taste like some kind of medicine Link easily gulped down the contents of the bottle before he felt a chill run down his spine and his skin was slightly paler as the effects of the heat disappeared leaving him feeling as if he was standing in the forest back home.

"If everything tasted like that they would sell medicine better." Link mused as he set the bottle back in his pocket feeling almost at 100% if it wasn't for the climb itself. Regardless of that he wasn't far from the edge of the crater, ash now coated the path leaving the once red stone covered in gray. A few moments later he could see a flow of lava traveling down the face of the cliff beside him so thick that it still flowed slowly, with that he pushed further up until he finally came to the end of his climb looking across the blackened surface of the stone.

A massive castle stood placed what he assumed was the edge of the crater before the wall broke and now two rivers of lava flowed along side the keep, but that was just the beginning. A literal army of humanoid lizards were in the middle of a battle against real dragons, granted while the dragons were outnumbered they made up for numbers with shear power. Streams of blue fire ripped through the lizards leaving their bodies crumbling to ash but their cinders were replaced within moments. Larger lizards were also in the mix, some on two legs with massive maws, other in armor giving orders. While streams of fire could also be seen in the sky where wyrms wrapped around thee castle's towers were taking out flying lizards keeping them from entering from the sky.

"...I'm gonna kill her..." Link quietly cursed the princess as his left eye developed a twitch. He debated going back down and storming Castle Town rather than walking straight into the shit storm ahead of him but he had gave his word. And she was kinda cute.

A deeply irritated sigh escaped Link as he readied his shield and spidershot, he doubted he would be able to do much with arrows and even his sword would take a while to damage a dragon. From the path he had taken Link was positioned far to the left of the castle which faced North where the Lizard-kin were approaching from. Link began to move forward along the cliff leading to the castle while using his black iron shield for both cover and as a disguise hiding behind it and blending in with the scorched stone outcroppings that filled the area.

As Link came to roughly be ten feet away from the lava flow on one side of the river he heard a screech from above and readied his shield as he looked up. One of the winged lizards had been clipped by a wyrm's fireball and was now falling toward him with a smoking stump in place of it's left wing. The sight made it seem like time slowed as Link quickly tried to figure out what to do, there was no way that the wyrm wouldn't check to make sure the lizard had been felled but if it fell on him he wouldn't have time to hide or fend off the reptile.

"Screw it." Link muttered and brought his shield arm back waiting for the lizard to reach him and just before it hit him he swung around smashing his shield into the flying lizard hard flinging it into the lava before crouching down behind his shield before the worm turned toward him. To the beast it would only seem as though the lizard had crashed into the lava and it then turned back to the skies to fry more of the lizard-kin.

"Way too close..." Link sighed before aiming the spidershot at a window on the second floor of the castle and firing feeling the thunk of the blade transfer down through the line to his arm. As he flexed his fist the line retracted pulling him from the ground to the window in a matter of seconds allowing him to safely travel across the lava. Now that he was inside he could take a breath, or so he thought before a low hiss came from his right.

Link quickly turned in time for his shield to deflect the blade of a lizard as it came down with an incredible amount of speed, in truth if he hadn't blocked it the swing would've took his arm. After the ring from of iron and steel the beast leaped back creating space between the lizard and link as its head twitched from side to side taking in Link and appraising him. The creature in question was roughly a foot taller than him and covered in green scales with a white underside while it's off-yellow eyes darted to and fro, for the most part he could mistake it for an overgrown lizard if it wasn't for the long curved blade it wielded in its right claw ending in solid black talons.

"Well, still better than fighting a dragon." Link breathed out while drawing his sword form his back however the lizard's eyes narrowed staring at Link like it understood what he had said before swiftly dropping to all-fours and rushing Link closing the gap in the blink of an eye. Link's instincts were all that saved him from the wicked rising slash delivered by the lizard as he twisted his body to the side. Responding in kind Link countered with a downward slash striking clean through the lizard's arm at the elbow disarming it and leaving the creature with a bloody stump. Link almost felt bad until he saw it's dismembered arm vanish in a puff of black smoke, signifying to him that the beast was a monster like the others.

As the creature reeled in pain reaching for the arm it no longer had Link pulled back his blade before driving it straight into the creatures chest where its heart was. With a sickening croak the beast went silent before its body went limp and slid down the wall. With a sharp twist Link meant to pull the blade free but the lizard vanished in a cloud of smoke, while link should've expected it part f him had hoped he would be able to get in and out without earning the ire of either side of this war that he had been sent into... Still mad at her.

"Better keep to the shadows..." Link muttered as he stayed close to the walls while the sounds of roars, metal ringing, and... explosions filled the air. In truth he had no idea where he was going so he needed to find a way to get his bearings in the castle, maybe a map or something. The gravity of the situation pressed on him further as every moment made him realize how under-prepared he was for this venture. He struggled to repress an agonized growl as he looked around the corner of the stone hallway seeing it lead to a large open area with a chandelier. Link moved forward and slid pressing his body against the rail that lined the balcony of the large room he had entered staying low as he looked through the gaps of the rail. The room itself looked like a foyer as it was decorated with long gold and red banners tarnished gold ornaments like the chandelier above.

Below on the floor were a group of lizards hissing together, Link could see one of the larger more wicked looking lizards giving orders to three like the one he had just taken out while there were three separated from the group that looked completely different. One had red and orange stripes and two curved horns atop its head while it held a greatsword that glowed with flame, the next had purple and blue stripes with two forward facing horns similar to a bull and held a sword dripping mist from its icy edge, the last had yellow and green stripes a single curved blade-like horn and wielded a spear glowing yellow and arcing with electricity.

'Never gonna be easy...' Link mused to himself as the normal lizards raced off down different paths before the older lizard regarded the three horned ones, it seemed like those three were the leaders of the group and the other lizard was next in command. The three responded before the older lizard raced toward a corner of the room and into a hole surrounded by fresh red earth, it seemed like they had tunneled in to avoid being caught by the dragons outside. The three horned lizards then proceeded to go down one of the other halls that the first three lizards didn't leaving the hall empty. Link quietly stood up looking around the hall to be sure finding himself stuck between a rock and a hard place.

"Great I don't know where to go and now there are murderous lizards crawling all over a dragon's den." Link groaned while running his fingers through his blonde hair. "Well... At least I'm not on fire..."

The hylian shook his head before trying to find a way to go, in his mind he expected to find a library in a large open room on the ground floor so that the books and shelves wouldn't compromise the structure so that means check the first floor, filled with murderous lizards. Great.

With narrowed eyes Link headed along the balcony and down the stairs which lead him down to the floor of the grand foyer with four large halls splitting off from it and a massive set of steel double doors blocking the entrance. Well now he had a choice to make and frankly he chose one without three enemies in it. After reaching the ground floor he turned right and went down the corridor while keeping his guard up. Suits of armor decorated the hall and old portraits hung from the wall but he stayed focused knowing a lizard went down this path. Eventually he could see a golden light a head of him drawing him into a room filled with treasure, gold laying in a massive pile glittering from the light of torches ringing the room.

"Whoa... Guess the stereotype is true, dragons love their treasure." Link spoke to himself as he walked into the room leaning down and looking over chalices, saucers, crowns and the like until he saw what looked like not gold. As his fingers brushed over the metal he couldn't what kind of metal it was but he took a hold and pulled it free from the golden sea before him. Once he could hold it up to the light he saw that it looked like a shield, one made up of many parts and with a symmetrical design like wings making up the face.

"Wait where's the lizard..." The realization hit Link and he quickly tossed aside the shield before raising up his shield and turning around with his own just in time as the lizard he had been tailing crashed into him hanging onto the iron shield and trying to snap at him with its jaws. Given the situation he couldn't pull his sword without falling over or taking one of the lizard's attacks so Link instead turned his body and toss his shield flinging the lizard against the stone wall disorienting it just long enough for Link to pull his black iron blade and prepare for the lizard's next attack however it didn't come as that side of the room exploded sending Link flying back into the treasure. While many royals dreamed of swimming in gold it wasn't all it's cracked up to be, if it wasn't for the newly reforged chain-mail Link was positive he would've been impaled by a gods damned fork.

"What the hell was that?..." Link coughed through the debris of obliterated stone that filled the room and once it cleared enough Link almost jumped. What had caused the explosion was actually the head of one of the worms crashing through part of the keep, and under it was a crimson splatter from where the lizard had stood that now began to hiss as black smoke. However Link himself jumped as the wyrm moved but it wasn't getting ready to attack, the wyrm was dead, what made it move was whatever pulled the serpentine dragon from the room and into the lava beyond the castle.

"Oh that is a lot of nope right there..." Link heaved as he got up seeing the trail of crimson from where the dragon was dragged but then noticed something was missing. He quickly searched all over and even the bloody rubble before him but found the broken handle of his shield coming to the conclusion that it had been dragged along stuck to the wyrm's head after crashing into it and the lizard.

"Shit... Ganondorf is going to kill me..." Link quietly muttered looking over the bloodied handle of the shield that had saved him from so many things that he couldn't imagine not having it now. With an aggravated growl the Hylian kicked a bowl sending it skittering out across the black earth outside the castle before picking up the metal shield he found early. Granted it was lighter but it didn't feel like it was anywhere as sturdy as Ganondorf's shield as Link slipped it onto his arm feeling a great sense of loss at losing the shield his brother had made for him.

However he didn't have much time to grieve as a low hiss drew his attention to the opening that he had kicked the golden bowl out of. Another winged lizard like the one he had tossed into the lava earlier stared him down before leaping with its wings outstretched. Between it's jumping ability and wings its glide crossed the distance in a matter of moments leaving Link only a moment to react as he jumped out of the way letting the winged lizard crash into the pile of gold. Using the opportunity Link leveled his arm and fire the spidershot at the beast but it rolled out of the way as soon as it heard the click of the blade firing leaving it to sink into what looked like a large golden dinner platter.

"Of course it missed..." Link breathed out as the lizard looked at the line connecting back to Link before rushing him, however Link wasn't as stuck as it seemed, using what he could Link pulled back hard on the line tugging the gold platter free with a great amount of speed as it raced toward him and slammed into the back of the lizard's skull with a loud metallic clang, the impact alone impaled the platter on the lizard's horn while freeing the spidershot from it. Now with the creature dazed Link leapt into the air bringing his blade down across the creature's torso cleaving through flesh and bone with the dense black blade.

With the final blow dealt the lizard split in twain before bursting into smoke leaving Link heaving in a kneeling position as he watched the creature's blood hiss and disappear from his blade. A breath slowly escaped from his lips as he stood up and grabbed the metal shield form the corner of the room before heading back towards the grand hall, not much had changed but he could see that more of the red earth had piled up around the hole the older lizard had escaped through. That alone made him come to the conclusion that more of the reptiles had invaded the castle and considering what had just happened Link wasn't feeling too enthusiastic about more lizards.

"I'm just gonna close this up." Link quietly said to himself while reaching into his bag until he found his bomb bag. After retrieving it he took out one and held it under his arm before proceeding to dump the whole bag into the tunnel. After what sounded like a group of confused hiss Link lit the bomb he still had and drop it in as well before walking off toward the next hall he intended to search just before the explosion went off collapsing the tunnel and burying the lizards within.

With that bit of violence out of the way Link quietly hummed while traversing this hall feeling accomplished as he checked the rooms along the way, most were simple rooms with the stones pulled up so that the dragons could create beds or nests. Scratch marks, shells, and hay laid along the ground so he wasn't sure what else they used it for. With a shrug Link continued further along until he heard banging from around the next corner. He moved close to the wall before peering around it seeing one of the Lizards with a large two-legged one beside it, this new lizard was at least half as tall as Link was with glittering gold and green scales lining its body while it rammed its head against a steel door. However the two didn't seem to get along as every time the normal Lizard tried to direct the hulking one it roared at the first with massive jaws that looked like it could bite the reptile in two.

Given that Link had just used his bombs he didn't have much else to do besides fight directly which wasn't his usual style. Silently Link stowed his sword and shield while pulling out his bow and an arrow pulling it back while looking around the corner. The larger reptile had a bare crimson tail, it could be a weakness or an old wound, given the two lizard's dispositions Link figured if he could piss the big one off it could eat the other one and make the fight easier on him so he shrugged and leaned out just enough to make the shot. With a quick thwip the arrow flew piercing into the beast's tail and causing it to roar in pain, Link swiftly ducked back around the corner and waited for the carnage to begin while the other lizard made worried and confused noises until finally there was an explosion.

Wait... explosion?

Link quickly looked back around the corner to see that there were two smoldering bodies, although one was half blown apart. Link didn't quiet understand how that happened but at least it took out both of them. The explosion itself ripped the door form its hinges ironically opening the way they had meant to go, Link put away his bow assuming that there would be no lizards inside given the situation however it took a while before he could see through all the black smoke and into the dark room. Within it seemed like a simple room with a small nest, roughly the size of Link, a water basin, and a food plate? Could be a trough, the plate had fresh met though some of it scorched.

"Why were they trying to get in here? There's nothing her- OH MY GOD!" Link begin to say before a bright flash of red filled his vision and he felt scales cover his face and what felt like scratching on his neck. It was kinda ticklish...

"DIE YOU STUPID LIZARD! YOU'LL ALL DIE FOR WHAT YOU DID!" A voice screeched out but it was young, younger than Link himself and that made him realize what was going on. Link reached around the flaps encasing his head and gently pulled them off and away from his face as he looked at the small crimson dragon glaring at him with eyes raging with flames as its breathed rush from it's small body the size of a cat. There was more than that though, streams fell from it's eyes.

"Hey now hold on, I'm not one of them." Link tried to explain while shifting the dragon to hold it in his hands but it's tail tail quickly whipped out against his cheek with a harsh crack, in truth that hurt him more than the bites the dragon tried to give him.

"LIAR! WHY ELSE WOULD YOU BE HERE?!" The young dragon roared at him as Link finally managed to hold it in a way that wasn't uncomfortable.

"Listen. I came here because someone asked me to find a book, they didn't even till me what was happening here." Link quietly said being tolerant of the dragon's anger knowing that it was a product of the war around it.

"So you're a thief!" The dragon spat with a growl still directing it's rage at the blonde.

"No I wanted to try and work a deal out but then I found out all this was going on." He said while looking at the dragon seeing most of the anger disappeared it still watched him in anger. "Look... I'm Link, what's your name?"

"...Volga, the 13th born of the great dragon Galovia!" The dragon proudly proclaimed while straightening his posture, however immediately after his gaze fell to Link's tunic but he was looking far further away. "I'm the last of my brothers and sisters... My mother locked me in here for my safety but I can't just sit here while they're attacking."

"I... I'm sorry for your loss, but I'm sure your mother just wanted you to be safe." Link tried to calm the young dragon while petting the scales atop it's head not sure to handle a dragon let alone something so young. "Well you won't be safe in here, I can keep you with me until we find your mother if you're alright with that?"

"You'd take me?..." Volga quietly asked while looking up at Link however his eyes hardened and his head snapped forward as he shot a small missile of fire past Link's head followed by an explosion. Link quickly turned around confused as he saw a tiny version of the large creature he had blown up earlier fall to the ground and curl up before bursting into smoke. "Stupid Dodongos... The minerals they consume make their body similar to gunpowder regardless of how aggressive they are."

"What?..." Link silently asked looking at the dragon as it climbed up his arm and folded its wings laying around Link's shoulders.

"I'm young, not stupid, tons of books here remember?" Volga quietly teased as Link gave him a look before sighing and beginning to leave the room before he felt an intense heat around him bringing him to his knees as he began to gasp for air. The potion must have worn off and now Link was almost literally in the frying pan.

"Link?! What's going on- oh humans can't normally be here because of how hot it is, I can fix that." The dragon moved it's position before lightly biting Link's neck which actually pinched this time but slowly the heat began to fade away again. "The dragon's blessing, makes anyone bestowed with it immune to heat for roughly 3 hours."

"Thank you... I would've burned alive without that..." Link gasped taking huge gulps of air now that every breath didn't scorch his lungs.

"Don't mention it, think of it like you're my vassel, now onward!" The dragon claimed oh so royally before Link chuckled and climbed to his feet. It was cute in a way though Link had no doubts it would wear off eventually, the cuteness that is. Now that he could breathe Link traveled back down the hall while Volga silently looked around at the castle seeing how little and how much had changed. As they reached the grand hall again his head tilted seeing the still smoking crater in one side of the room before looking at Link.

"They dug in and I blew up the hole." Link shrugged avoiding the dragon's gaze.

"Eh it's fine. This place is sturdier than it looks." Volga commented while Link looked around the room knowing the ways he had been through already, though he now had a different goal.

"Where do you think your mother would be? I didn't see a huge dragon when I made my way inside." Link asked while Volga sniffed the air before recoiling.

"Ick lizard stink, um she should be in the courtyard waiting to crush anything that managed to reach the deepest part of the castle." the dragon chirped while looking at the hall for a few moments before realizing Link didn't know the way. "Oh it's through the upper hall on the right, then its a straight shot the- AAAAHHH LET ME GO!"

"Volga?!" Link quickly turned as he felt the dragon pulled from his shoulders and Volga's voice pierced the air. The dragon hung in mid-air like it was flying but his wings were still closed, slowly color begin to appear, a long pink muscle spanned upwards about ten feet before revealing a maw and crimson scales around it, then orange and twin curved horns, it was the fire lizard he saw earlier. The creature let out a creepy chuckle as it opened it's jaws and began to pull Volga up towards its mouth.

"NO!" Link called out as he readied his bow and reached back for an arrow, however the lizard saw his actions and fired a ball of flame into his quiver destroying his arrows in a single act. Link's gaze grew hotter as rage boiled within him, he wouldn't let this happen to someone he had just promised to protect! As his blue eyes scanned the room they finally found something, Link turned and rush for the destroyed hole before reaching down and grabbing a stone roughly the size of his fist and hurled it straight for the creepy laughing lizard's mouth. Link heard the effect before he saw it, a loud crack as the lizard fell from the balcony holding its mouth as blood and broken teeth laid across the stone floor. More importantly Volga was safe.

"Volga let's go!" The hylian called out to the dragon mid-sprint however he felt like he had just slammed into a wall as he was sent sprawling back on the stone. Before Link color started to emerge again, this time blue and purple, the ice lizard had blocked him.

"LINK!" Volga's voice snapped the blonde's attention to it's location as Link saw the lightning lizard carrying him off down the hall the lizards had taken earlier with the fire lizard following close behind it. The ice lizard however stared Link down before following after them, Link quickly got to his feet before rushing after them and down the hallway as he drew his sword and shield. A fire was burning inside him now, after everything that dragon had gone through Link would NOT let him perish like his brothers and sisters.

However as he passed a suit of armor he felt that he was suddenly grabbed by the shirt and pulled behind it. This time he was ready to act although he wasn't ready for the touch of soft skin against his lips. This time when color emerged he saw deep blue and white cloth with a somewhat familiar red eye-like design though he couldn't place it. What sparked his anger was the pale skin, crystal blue eyes, and blonde hair framing the face of the woman who had sent his ass up here to begin with.

"Shh, keep your voice down or they'll find us..." The 'figure' quietly said while peering out around the corner to see if the coast was clear but Link was far past stealth.

"What the hell do you mean keep my voice down?! Why the hell are you even here when you sent me for your stupid book?!" Link's voice was ringing off the walls now and while most people would probably recoil after being yelled at Zelda just blinked in shock.

"W-Wait how do you know it's me?" She asked her voice stuttering slightly but that did nothing to quell Link. "And you were taking too long so I came and got it."

"I took too long? It's barely nightfall! And I can tell it's you because I'm not a retard from the country! You have the same pale skin, the same blonde hair, the same blue eyes, and the same lack of an ass or tits!" Link yelled as he finally had enough of the princess's games, he didn't care anymore if she helped him, she threw him into a volcanic castle that was in the midst of a war between dragons and lizards and then she decided to come get the book herself because he was taking too fucking long?!

Zelda acted rather nonchalant at his reaction to her being there but his opinion didn't matter, although the next part as he listed her characteristics didn't stun her and sure enough as she checked her eyes she was missing the color enchantment she used for her disguise. The last part however about her not having an ass or tits turned her face beet red and she brought her hand back aiming to slap him as hard as possible.

"HOW DARE YOU! YOU INSUFFERABLE PEASANT WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE CALLIN-" Her words were cut off as soon as Link grabbed her wrist staring her down with the eyes belonging to a beast, not those of a simple farm boy.

"I. Do not. Give a damn. About how you are. I'm tired of your fucking games. Take your precious book and get out now before you get caught." With that Link shoved her back making her fall on her lack-of-an-ass though it was on the red carpet before he walked past her stopping only to glare back at her. "I can't believe such a worthless person is the heir to the kingdom. Enjoy your stupid book."

Link took off not wasting another second as he went after Volga cursing the time the 'princess' made him waste. Zelda however stared after him with hands and lip trembling, she couldn't believe that someone had actually talked to her like that. False anger rose up in her but she simply sighed, she would have troops sent to hunt him down and bring him before her but he wasn't wrong, she wasn't in any position to rule the kingdom and maybe she never would be but she was trying as hard as she could to claim her birthright dammit!

"Heh, let's go." The rough voice of Impa pierced the air as she stood leaning against the wall beside the princess still hidden by the magic the two were using to infiltrate the castle.

"...I can't believe you let him do that to me." Zelda quietly muttered before climbing to her feet and reactivating the spell.

"I just got here, I have no idea what you're talking about, did you find the book?" Impa was obviously lying finding the whole exchange rather amusing in regard to the woman's ward. Maybe that boy would be the one to make her see what she needed to, Wisdom comes from within.

"Yes I found it, hopefully this tome will teach me what I need." Zelda mused but Impa could only shake her head out of sight. Maybe not.

"VOLGA!" Link braced his shield as he ran into the double doors at the end of the hallway slamming into it and forcing it open making the lightning and fire lizards jump just as the lightning one was about to eat Volga. "Drop him now!"

The lightning lizard only rolled his eyes before holding Volga out for the fire Lizard to hold, while it did the Fire lizard was still rubbing its mouth from the broken teeth Link had caused earlier. The lightning lizard grabbed it's spear, sparking with electricity as it moved closer to Link tapping the tip to the ground making sharp zapping effects as an intimidation tactic similar to how ranchers would use a whip to herd animals. Link wasn't having it though, once the lightning lizard was close enough Link darted in using his sword to bat away the spear without touching the electrified spearhead then raise his new shield slamming it into the lower jaw of the lizard lifting it clean off the ground.

The blow shocked the fire lizard causing him to lose his grip on Volga's mouth allowing the dragon to speak. "Link they're Lizalfos! These three can use fire, ice, and lightning, they can also camoflague themselves to become invisib-"

Volga was cut off as the Fire Lizalfos grabbed his mouth again but that was enough for Link. Before he could deal a finishing blow the Lightning Lizalfos jumped back hissing through its broken and blood maw as the Ice Lizalfos made a short sound like a chuckle at seeing it's kin being beaten. This time the Lightning Lizalfos reared back and threw its spear straight at Link, given the nature of the weapon Link turned his body out of the way rather than blocking it and risk being shocked. Though in that same instance the Lightning Lizalfos was already right in front of him. Reacting on a dime Link brought his blade across his front aiming to deflect an attack but he actually cut off the Lizalfos' horn sending it skittering across the stone floor as the lizard crashed beside Link feeling for its horn. Taking the chance Link brought up his blade and sank it straight down into the Lizalfos' neck, a few moments later the lizard faded away as black smoke.

"Who's next?" Link breathed after pulling his blade free from the stone ready to keep fighting as his gaze darted back and forth between the fire and ice Lizalfos'. They each took a look at each other before the Fire one threw Volga to the Ice who caught it and watched as the Fire Lizalfos lifted its greatsword and moved toward Link. In contrast to the Lightning, the Fire was slow and menacing as it came closer, Link slowly stepped back watching it getting ready to move when he saw an attack. However when it did attack Link wasn't expecting it, the creature leaned forward and launched a ball of flame from its maw forcing Link to leap to the side and that was when the Fire Lizalfos swung the huge fire blade in a wide arc aiming to cleave Link in two with a single blow and it would have if it wasn't for the shield he had. Although the force of the blow still sent him flying across the stone floor.

With the wind knocked out of him Link slowly moved to his feet as he gasped feeling his side making sure his ribs were still intact. Once he was sure he got back to his feet watching as the Fire Lizalfos stared him down. Now that Link understood how it fought he could counter it, This time he dashed in closing the distance fast and watched for his opening, it was when the beast opened it's mouth and that was when Link threw his shield right into the Lizalfos' mouth making it's throat bulge and glow from the fire within. That moment was all he needed, Link plowed straight into the Fire Lizalfos impaling the creature on his blade.

"Link move!" Volga called out as Link turned to see the Ice Lizalfos grab a hold of him in a bear hug while the Fire Lizalfos burst into smoke.

"Ah shit..." Link gasped as he felt the cold body of the reptile clinging to and crushing his own, that wasn't all though ice began to spread across his body from where the beast was holding onto him if he didn't find a way out he would be shattered. It was then that he felt something welling up inside, but not within himself it was beneath him inside the volcano. The cold seemed to disappear as the pressure built up and Link felt the heat surging beneath and around him.

"Get. Off. OF ME!" Link roared as an inferno burst from his body erasing the ice that had been coating his body and trapping the Ice Lizalfos in the inferno as Link projected the flames of the volcano through his body. The wildfire around him was like a tempest of heat as he turned to see the Lizalfos blacken then crumble away freeing himself before the flames finally ceased. Although with that surge of power Link had to have exhausted most of his mana and he fell tot he ground heaving but he understood what happened a bit more this time. "F-Fire... Magic..."

"Wow... That was so cool! I didn't know you could do that, you should have told me!" Volga happily yelled flying over to Link and looking him eye-to-eye, the dragon looked genuinely happy and impressed with his 'vassel' so Link just gave him a grin and reached up to pet his head earning something between a coo and a purr. Link slowly pulled himself up into a sitting position feeling the exhaustion of using so much mana in one go, though now as he looked around he realized he was in the library, the irony isn't wasted.

"I couldn't do it until now, are you okay?" Link said as he looked at Volga what had climbed back up his arm to his shoulders.

"Yeah... Thank you for saving me." Volga replied quietly seeming to swallow his 'royal pride' but Link was just glad he was okay. While Link appreciated their moment of peace it didn't last long, the entirety of the castle began to rumble before half of the library seemed to collapse filling the room with dust and making the two cough. When enough of the dust had cleared to where Link could finally see it looked like a wall had fallen from an upper level, until it began to move.

Slowly the obstruction moved revealing that it was actually the back of a massive dragon easily the size of the keep itself. A gigantic dragon covered with dark, red scales and it's lower body beige in color, with noticeable scars on it's stomach and neck. It's back had multiple black spines reaching down from the back to the end of it's tail. It's eyes glowed in a yellow hue blocking any detail Link could make out. Although the massive bat-like wings and fangs that looked more dangerous than any warrior's blade caught his gaze when the beast looked his way.

"Volga? YOU DARE TRY TO TAKE THE LAST OF MY KIN?!" The dragon roared at Link it's massive maw beginning to glow bright with flames.

"MOTHER NO! HE SAVED ME!" Volga's voice echoed in front of him as the crimson dragon swiftly moved around and spread his wings out in front of Link defending him. Despite that Link couldn't imagine her hearing her son of the roar of her flames her maw closed and her golden eyes looked over her son and the Hylian.

"If what my son says is true, take him from this place and protect him. GO NOW!" After the dragon had given her orders she rose up from the ground and turned back to her battle. Once Galovia had taken to the sky again Link saw the carnage that had transpired, most of what used to be the keep had been demolished and sank into the lava that was pouring from the volcano. However it wasn't the volcano, something in the lava was attacking, molten globs flew from the glowing rock aimed to strike down the mother dragon though they missed Link could see them lose their glow and become shiny as they fell back to earth.

"Lava that shoots metal... K I'm fine with leaving." Link decided forcing himself to his feet ready to leave but Volga hovered there watching his mother. Link wasn't blind, he could see the desperation in the dragon's eyes, he wanted to do something he needed to do something to fight along side his mother. "You aren't leaving are you?"

"No. But I don't know what to do either..." It was in that last word that Link heard the dragon's voice crack and he made up his mind.

"Well I'm a bit winded but lets see what we can do, and if we survive please tell your mom not to eat eat me for disobeying alright?" Link playfully teased Volga as he held out his arm.

The dragon just stared at Link not knowing what to say and dropped onto his arm moving up to his shoulders. "Alright lets do it."

Once Volga was safe Link raced out through the way that Galovia had created though he almost fell now that the platform they were on was at an angle. Once they were outside The mass of lava climbed out of the lava and roared with a force the shed the lava form it's body revealing a massive creature somewhere between a lizard and a dragon. The creature had massive legs and was hunched forward with a long tail and wickedly clawed arms, along its back were twin rows of what looked like crimson crystalline spines dividing roughly at its hips where the spines grew into larger shield-like plates, its head was simple and resembled the other large lizards Link had seen except for the small silver horn jutting from it's snout as the lava illuminated revealing dark blue and silver scales covering its body.

"The Dodongo Queen..." Volga breathed out quietly as a shiver went through the dragon's body. "They're rarely ever seen besides in situations where they mean to take over territory that the other Lizard-kin can't, they eat ore veins exposed by the lava in their breeding grounds making them far more resistant to heat but also vulnerable to physical attacks so they-"

Before Volga could continue the queen began to gag and lean its body up before it finally spit out molten metal along its own body and as it slowly cooled it's body became covered in armor from the cooled metal. "-So they make armor by throwing up the molten ore... So gross."

"So a massive lizard that can coat itself in armor... Great..." Link quietly muttered while he gripped his sword and shield tighter. "I could really use some arrows right now..."

*Command Accepted; Entering Requisition Mode." A voice chirped out from Link's right arm.

"...What?" Link silently asked as he looked at his shield watching as it begin to whirl and shift, the face of the shield split open becoming wings while the core of the shield became a bird like machine. Before Link could say anything or react further the mechanized bird leapt from his arm and flew off away from the battle. "...Why not? Fucking incredible."

"What was that?" Volga asked quietly looking from him to the bird vanishing in the distance.

"I have no idea I found it in the treasure room after I lost my shield." Link sighed so tired of how things had been going.

"Well... The better to swing your sword with?" Volga offered with a wry smile however the look Link shot the dragon made him quickly look away.

"Yeah I've got my sword..." Link said quietly looking at the black blade his brother had made for him. "The sword is enough, I just need to find a way."

Volga looked at Link confused before looking at the sword, the Hylian however pushed off the ground running for the collapsed castle and leaping up the stone bricks that stuck out like stepping stones. Once he had reached the roof he ran along it until he reached the edge and jumped reaching out for Galovia's tail managing to get a hold of it before she flew higher into the air avoiding the queen's next barrage of molten metal.

"The hell are you doing?!" Volga squeaked as he clung to Link thinking the blonde had lost his mind as he began to climb up the dark red scaled of his mother. It took a fair amount of time and the dragoness's aerial maneuver certainly didn't make it any easier.

"Well if all I have is my sword, I need a way to make my sword more effective and right now that means trying to stab it as far into that thing's face as I can." Link grunted at the dragon's lower back now. Volga remained quiet for the remainder of the climb until Link stood on her shoulder getting a grip of her scales just before she fired a stream of white fire in a torrent that ripped the armor from the queen making it roar before beginning to gag again.

"Mother! We need your help!" Volga called out which shocked Link and caused Galovia to turn her head and look at the two of them with narrowed eyes.

"I told you to leave!" Her voice boomed shaking Link as Volga climbed down his arm looking her face to face.

"We don't have time, trust us! We can beat the queen!" Volga roared back just as the Queen Dodongo began to coat itself in molten metal once more. "Blast off the armor and throw us at it!"

"Wait throw?" Link asked but was drowned out by the flapping of the massive wings as Volga wrapped himself around Link's forearm.

"...Very well my son." Galovia quietly accepted reaching up to take Link in her claws hand before looking back at the queen as she began to launch another flurry of molten metal at the dragon. Her glowing eyes narrowed with resolve as she gathered a large breath followed by a wicked roar of flame as the pure white fire crashed into the Queen Dodongo tearing off it's armor again. Once the beast was stripped Galovia brought back her arm and threw Link and Volga straight down at the massive reptile.

"Focus your fire! I'll amplify your mana!" Volga's voice echoed through the rushing wind and Link did as he said channeling his fire down along his arm and his blade then something unthinkable happened, volge merged into his arm and crimson flames shot up his sword changing it and turning it into a great red and orange blade with a flame pattern edge. "Do it now!"

"Right! No giving up!" Link said as he pulled his blade back not having time to be dumbstruck by what happened as the golden triangle on the back of his hand glowed brightly out of view lending it's own power to the blow. Moments before making contact Link turned his body and swing down the fire blade with as much force as possible yelling as the blade struck and the stream of flame exploded piercing straight through the Queen Dodongo as Link shot down along its back running between the two rows of spikes before finally leaping off the lizard's tail.

'Brother... Did you see that?' Link silently thought to himself while he fell to the ground below. As his body hit the stone he tried to roll to minimize the impact but he didn't time quiet right as he hit the ground hard.

"Ahh! Fuck..." Link winced dropping the sword and Volga instantly reformed moving up to Link's head checking on him before the two heard a crack. They both looked at the Queen to see it frozen in time with a glowing gold line spanning from it's snout to half way down it's tail, nothing moved until the silver 'horn' that had sat in it's head landed point first in the shattered piece of the courtyard. From there the ground began to splinter breaking off the section they were on and sending it floating with the rest of the lava stream created by the battle between queens.

"Well... Killed a massive lizard and now I'm gonna die by lava..." Link sighed to himself feeling himself being carried on the chunk of earth.

"Don't be so quick to accept your fate mortal." Galovia's soothing voice came from above as she reached down to take him form the piece of rock.

"Yeah you're right..." Link smiled quietly with his eyes closed before getting up and heading towards Galovia's hand but he heard something that made him turn around looking at the wreckage, the lava, the silver shard. Link couldn't tell what it was but it was like a whisper filling his mind.

~You'll... With me... Right?...~

~Link... I... See you later...~

The words all seemed to blend together like wind but the voice felt familiar as Link held his head and moved toward the shard grasping it before pulling hard to dislodge it from the ground. The voices all stopped once he had pulled it free but the platform broke again now into many more bits of rock but before he could fall in Galovia caught him lifting him into the skies.

"mortals and their shiny things... I suppose we have that in common." The dragoness mused as she glided down the volcano to the point in of Death Mountain where Link had met Daroos and taken the path to Highpeak. "I thank you for your assistance Hylian, may I have your name?"

"Um... it's Link... ma'am." Link quietly answered her as he slid form her palm to the red earth and looked back up to her as she handed him his sword.

"Well thank you again Link, I deem you worthy of the title Dragon-kin, bear it well." Galovia declared proudly while Link took his blade, the shard in his other hand smiling up at the mother dragon.

"I don't know what to say, I just gave Volga my word." Link said before looking to the red dragon happily curled over his shoulders.

"Well one's word is more precious than gold these days it seemed, now than Volga it's time we find another home." Galovia said looking to her son whose head drooped a bit not wanting to make eye contact.

"Mother... I'd like to travel with Link for a while..." The young dragon declared between the three of them surprising Link to say the least but Galovia's tail whipped against the stone cracking it.

"...Are you sure?" Her words seemed tempered as she wanted to be a mother but in the same vein she wanted to give her son the freedom to live how he wanted especially with the war that he suffered through finding his part in it through Link.

"Yes, I want to see more of this place and learn more." Volga finally looked up to meet his mother's eyes proud and resolute.

"Very well, if that is what you wish." Galovia let out a breath and leaned down to kiss her fledgling on the head and then Link. "Link, my 14th heir, watch over your older brother."

"Older?..." Link asked confused as Galovia lifted off into the sky heading back up the cliff to salvage their old home. "Older brother?"

"Heh yeah, I'm 312, we recently came back to Hyrule our kind used to live here a long time ago." Volga informed Link while watching his mother go until she disappeared into the smoke ring around Death Mountain.

"...She put me in charge." Link quietly said before sheathing his sword and stowing the crystal then turning to head down the path back into Kakariko.

"N-no, but... I'm older!" Volga whined as he flew after Link.

~X~

Ganondorf breathed a heavy sigh as his blade clashed with his trainer using his strength and force to push back against him caught in the sword clash. Despite Ganondorf's large powerful build, his mentor's build was just the opposite; thin and unassuming, so the fact that he could hold off he beast of a man in a clash of swords with little effort baffled the mind.

It was late now and it was Ganondorf's decision to continue sparring into the night to better himself going blow for blow with his mentor in the cool night air. However it was then that a golden blink caught his attention far to the East amidst the smoke of Death Mountain. 'Link?'

"Gotcha~" The voice punctuated the mistake as his master swept Ganondorf's legs out from under him and putting him on his back. "Always be mindful of your surroundings in battle, your enemy will capitalize on any moment's hesitation~"

Ganondorf grumbled under his breath but sighed and took his mentor's hand when it was offered to him climbing back to his feet. "You're right, I guess that's enough for tonight. Thank you again for dedicating so much of your time to training me, Master Ghirahim."


	10. Trick or Treat?

**10\. Trick or Treat**

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 **Again, thank you to Magus Neon and Cnelson117 for their support and comments.**

 **Now onto the nitty gritty, THE LEMON IS HERE!**

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"So Volga, how did you do that thing earlier? When you became that sword." Link quietly asked looking at Volga who was laying over his shoulders once more while Link followed the earth carved road leading back down to Kakariko.

"Oh, well it's really old magic, elder dragons could fuse with a knight and grant them incredible powers and armor, but I guess the sword is all I could manage heh sorry about that." Volga explained before offering his apology making Link look at him confused.

"Don't apologize it was awesome, probably the only reason we won, did you see that massive stream of light?" Link did his best to put Volga at ease praising the dragon's performance and still hyped up about what they managed to do together against the Queen Dodongo.

"I... don't know what that was, my affinity is fire not light, none of my siblings were either most were fire with two being aligned with earth." Volga admitted while lowering his head.

"Don't worry about it, still saved us." Link claimed not letting the lack of info get them down. "Oh, there is something I'm curious about too, I went up to Highpeak to get a book, you said you read a lot so if I describe the book think you could tell me what it's about?"

"Yeah probably, I read everything in the library at least three times over." Volga said curious.

"Alright it had a deep blue silk-like cover with a lot of gold accents." Link explained trying to think of if there were any more details about the book that stood out. "May have been related to royalty?"

"Hm... Sounds like the record of past princesses and their exploits, they actually have a tradition of naming all of their first born daughters Zelda." Volga said remembering the book. "But there were parts I couldn't read, they were obscured with magic."

"Huh, interesting..." Link mused starting to question the book, it sounded like information the no-ass-princess could have easily gotten from the castle. Link quite clearly held a grudge.

Somewhere between Kakariko and Castle Town...

A loud thunk sounded from a fist striking the wooden panel of a carriage. Zelda winced and rubbed her hand while Impa looked at the princess with a raised brow. "What was that about?"

"I don't know, I suddenly remembered that peasant saying I had no figure..." Zelda quietlt muttered as she felt her hand throb dully.

"Well you don't." Impa responded.

"IMPA!"

Back with Link and Volga...

"I suppose, it seemed pretty boring." Volga claimed matter-of-factly as they reached the stone arch where the road ended and they were in Kakariko once more.

The lively strip seemed quiet now and most of the shops that been so bus hours ago were closed up leaving a hand full of businesses left at night. Link could at least make out the Emporium and bar were open and not much else, with a light shrug he began his walk down the now barren street towards the huge building as a puff of smoke escaped the window making Link grin.

"Um, should I be worried you're walking towards the exploding building? I could smell the sulfur from here." Volga asked while giving Link a look.

"Yeah don't worry about it, a friend lives there." Link said hoping it would calm the dragon, but it didn't.

"A friend that blows up their house..." The dragon mumbled making Link roll his eyes as he reached the door before rapping on the metal plate with his knuckle sounding a distinctive clang.

"COME IN!" Baris' familiar voice called from inside and so he pushed it open before stepping in smelling the bitter scent of the explosion earlier. The lights were still on as Link heard the familiar tap of shoe on metal and turned toward the stairs before being shocked in place. A beautiful girl with crimson hair reaching her shoulders, a red top, and yellow overalls complete with a tool belt descended the stairs before giving him a look and that same familiar voice left her lips. "Cat got your tongue or somethin' hero?"

"O-oh, didn't recognize you at first, sorry." Link chuckled embarrassed as Baris narrowed her eyes.

"What do you mean you didn't recognize me? I mean you I've been busy for the past few days but I still bathe ya know." Baris glared quietly making Link realize that her prior appearance was just the grime and soot from blowing up so many experiments she was working on.

"I..." Link began.

"Should shut up." Volga finished looking at Link like he was stupid although that made the bomb-maker's eyes move to the crimson dragon that she hadn't noticed yet and she dropped the hammer in her left hand making a loud clang ring out through the Emporium causing Link to jump and Baris lunged forward toward Link. Thinking he was about to get hit he raised his hands in front of his face but the blow never came, as he slowly lowered his arms he saw Baris happily holding up Volga checking him over like a veterinarian or something while the whole incident shocked the dragon into silence while Baris' finger glided over hies red scales.

"Oh my gods, I never thought I'd get to see a real honest to goodness dragon!" Baris squealed while lowering her arms and hugging the dragon to her rather ample chest. "Link, I will give you free bombs for life if you let me spend the night examining him!"

"...What? Why?..." Link quietly asked dumbfounded by her reaction and request while Volge calmed down entrapped in her warm embrace.

"Dragon's are renown for making incredible advances in alchemy, Dragon hearts can create potions of immortality, a potion made from their tongue can allow you to command any reptile, and Their sca- WHOA!" Baris went on and on explaining the value of dragons which made Link's heart drop while Volga began to flap his wings startled cutting her off.

"Baris! How could you think of butchering him for some weird science?!" Link stared at her in shock stepping forward to take Volga from her however she hugged the dragon pinning its wings.

"I wouldn't do that! Now, as I was saying before I was interrupted," Baris paused to glare at the dragon with a weak intent. "Dust from dragon scales can create incredibly potent explosives, I wanna harvest some of his scale dust. Pretty much gonna groom him."

"Oh..."

"Oh..." Link and Volga echoed each other glancing at each other before looking back to the red-head who sighed and smiled lightly.

"I wouldn't dream of hurting you," She cooed sweetly before kissing his head. "My special little money tree~"

'There it is.' Link thought to himself as she happily took Volga back upstairs with her to her workshop with Link following behind her. "Hey, I didn't agree you know?"

"Oh come on Link, Who is really gonna turn down free Dragon Scale bombs for life?" The girl looked back at him before setting Volga down on her work bench which was covered with tools, det cord, and primers.

"...Volga are you okay with this?" Link looked at the red dragon who gave a look around the workshop/store room and nodded his head.

"Yeah if she does anything funny I can just blow the place to Hylia~" The dragon responded gleefully which earned him a glare from the bomb maker across the room who was looking for tools.

"Don't touch my bombs fire-breath! Link leave your bomb bag I'll top it off for you tonight." Baris chided olga before giving Link his instructions. He found it somewhat funny considering he had already used all the bombs he had gotten from her.

"Um... right," Link quietly answered while taking out the textured bag and setting it beside Volga where he saw a boomerang laying on the table. "Hey Baris, what's this?"

"Huh? Oh that's my newest invention. The Kaboomerang!" The bomb-maker proclaimed proudly as she brought over a small box of tools and containers setting them down before picking up the kabooming boomerang as it were. "You see, you just turn this dial here on the middle then let'er rip."

"Does this one work?" Link quietly asked remembering his previous experience with her wares. However that comment got a glare and without looking away from Link she turned the dial before turning and hurling it out threw her window.

"Now the dial sets an igniter at a certain point along the fuse so you turn it to the amount of time you need it to explode at and- IT'S NOT EXPLODING!" Baris began to explain before panicking as the kaboomerang did what boomerangs did, and came back. She bolted for the window and slammed the window's steel panels shut as the kaboomerang hit it and, well, kaboomed. "Dammit... I still don't have the timer down."

"It's alright, don't let your talent go to waste." Link smiled as he went over to her offering her his hand to lift her to her feet. As she stood face to face with him he saw the soot streak across her streak from the blast and it reminded him of how all of her skin looked before. "So, yeah, you can keep Volga for the night since he's okay with it."

"REALLY!? ThankyouthankyouthankyouthankYOUUUU!" Baris squealed again as she bounced and kissed his cheek before rushing over to her table and in a matter of seconds she already had her set up ready for Volga. Link blushed faint from the kiss on his cheek but smiled and began to make his way out. "Oh if you don't have anywhere to stay, you can sleep here, I'll be up all night with my favorite dragy yes I will."

"Haha, thanks but I think I can probably get my room at the Apothecary... slash bar." Link couldn't help as she spoke to Volga in baby speak while Baris shrugged and picked up a steel brush right before Link stepped out through the doors.

'That girl is crazy' Link thought with a smile on his face looking up at the clear moonlit sky. Now with the town virtually asleep he could appreciate the serenity of the village carved from the stone. The cool night air felt like a lover's touch after being surrounded by the scorching heat of the volcano making the young man sigh in peace.

Although the sounds began to shift, like whispers on the wind.

"Gale?" Link quietly asked looking into his bag to see that she was still recovering within. The whisper weren't soft like silk like the previous ones had been when he was grabbing the shard that fell from the Queen Dodongo, they were like the wind blowing harshly against his ear but the wind was barely moving at all.

~hero...~

~wher...id...go...~

~yo...eft...us...~

Link shook his head as the voices continued to grow more restless with ever motion of his body until they dulled for a brief moment. As his eyes opened he saw the path beside the path Talio had brought him into town from and the voices faded slightly. Link was shaken now as the once cool night air felt like ice on his pale fair skin, If they wanted him to go he didn't have much choice unless he wanted his ears to start bleeding from the howls.

Link followed the path into the carved stone passage traveling the slight bend until he emerged in a clearing under the light of the full moon. A graveyard laid sprawled out before him with a few dead trees in between the grave stones that were lined up in a multitude of rows. It wasn't massive but it certainly showed the lives that Kakariko once supported.

~Thi...is...whe...we...est...~

Light breezes came across his skin once more but still held that icy chill as he stepped forward walking along the path of the where he heard running water up ahead. A marble bridge spanned a 30 foot wide gap that had a river rushing through it below that seemed to have been carved out over time and in front of him was a memorial with a symbol that he felt was familiar but he couldn't place it. Three crescents back to back with four gems centered in each crescent and one in the center at the core. The image bugged him but he just couldn't place where he knew it from so he looked down reading the rest of the memorial.

"Queen Rutala once laid at rest here but she has since been moved to be remembered among her own kind." Link read aloud quietly confused, wouldn't moving the body count as disturbing the remains? With a shrug Link past it where there were five grave markers were aligned before him, these ones were different though, they were hug slanted stone slabs that covered the grave entirely and the faces were covered with intricate markings. These markings were the same as the ones on that book he saw with the flat princess, they must be the graves of the royal family Link concluded as he touched the one placed in the center. However the second he touched it the sharp crack of thunder rang out and as Link looked to the sky it was dyed a deep purple before a black bolt of lightning fell from the cloudless sky shattering the grave before him and sending smoking shards of stone over the area.

"What the hell is going!?" Link called out rolling over to look at the darkened sky that was now filled with clouds racing past the sky like time had been sped up.

~Link...~

The voice called him again and now he knew it was coming from where the lightning had struck, the grave he had touched.

~Y... .e.. m.. ..e...~

The voice was frail now as he slowly got to his feet and stepped closer to the grave.

~Yo,, ,et, me. .ie...~

This time the voice was stronger and sounded like someone spoke to him but he still couldn't make it out as he neared the edge seeing a black bottomless grave where the grave marker had once been.

~You. let. me. die...~

The voice now came from beside his ear and as it made him jerk back in shock like every inch of his body was on edge as he saw a woman floating above the grave in a regal looking dress decorated in purple, white, and gold. Her soulless blue eyes pierced him and before he could turn away he felt a hand on the center of his back.

"Not this time hero~" A voice declared behind him before shoving Link toward the shade and her grave to fall into oblivion, but he wouldn't let go as he felt a sharp burst of strength within him. Thsi time he recognized it as his mana and his hand shot out grabbing the edge of the grave as he felt hands grab a hold of his legs pulling to bring him down with them.

"NO! Dammit!" Link cursed as his fingers dug into the earth and his body felt the cold around him but it was more than that, he felt the darkness. With a surge he felt like he was freezing as his mana began to lower steadily and the hands let go of him. He knew better than to look a gift horse in the mouth and pulled himself out as fast as he could before making a run for the cavern that lead back to Kakariko. However what he didn't know was that even if anyone else were still there with him, not a soul would see him flee.

As Link came out of the tunnel he was panting from physical, mental, and magical exhaustion, but he got away so even if he was on death's door step... Bad comparison.

He turned to look back at the cave while gulping down a breath of air and holding over his heart feeling it race so hard he thought it was going to punch through his skin. He had fought a phantom skull, an arachnid on steroids, and a giant molten ore spitting lizard, and so far this experience is what made him feel like he was going to die of fear.

"Link? Are you okay sugar?" A soft voice came from a few feet away making him jump, more from his latest adventure than the voice's owner but it made Cindy jump with a quiet eep as well. "Dammit why'd you have to do that?"

"I-I... I'm sorry..." Link quietly managed to breathe out not noticing that both his voice and body were shaking like there was an earthquake under his feet.

"Link, you're pale as a sheet like you've just seen a ghost, what happened?" Her soft voice asked slowly making Link stop shivering as she rubbed his shoulder.

"I don't know... I heard something in the graveyard... Then the lightning..." Link spoke quietly while Cindy watched him genuinely concerned.

"Shug, the sky has been clear all day, we haven't had any lightning." She said softly, not like she didn't believe him like she was consoling him. "Here tell you what, let's go to the hot springs so you can unwind it'll be my treat,"

"Alright..." Link quietly agreed as the flashes of what happened replayed behind his closed eyes while they walked toward the road that lead back up Death Mountain, the same path he had came down merely an hour before. While they climbed the path Link leaned into the woman's warmth resting his head on her shoulder which made Cindy giggle softly as she stayed beside him leading him up until a bright light caught Link's attention and he blinked to clear his vision.

"Hi yes, I'm here with my friend, how much is it for two?" Cindy's voice was still beside him as he came to see a large stone lobby? Rows of fire line both sides while a goron stood behind a desk in front of them and hot steam drifted out from the two openings.

"Ah of course Ms Cindy, it will be thirty rupees with your member's discount." The goron answered happily while accepting the rupees that Cindy handed over from her jacket pocket.

"Thank you again Daras." She said happily before heading over towards one of the openings. Link watched her confused before she pointed at the other doorway. A simple image of a man was on the stone which made Link realize that they must be to two separate baths, with a quick nod and a timid smile he walked in while Cindy entered her own moments after. Inside the air was warm and torches lit the area where small holes were carved into the earth, while Link had never been to a hot spring before he understood the basics so he started to undress after grabbing one of the folded towels beside the item storage. Once all of his clothes were tucked away and his towel was around his waist he sighed heading through the next small hall until he stepped out at the edge of the hot spring seeing the torches around the area lighting the steam and water while the perfectly normal full moon shown from up above.

A soft sigh escapede Link's lips as he stepped into the hot water and took a few more steps while taking off his towel and setting it on the edge of the water before sinking his body into the hot water. The water pierced him sapping his fatigue so fast he could fall asleep in the warm embrace of the water as he leaned back into the edge of the spring.

"Man this feels great..." Link happily mused while closing his eyes just feeling the warmth soothe his battered body.

"I know right? I love it here." Cindy's soft voice came from behind him making Link sit up and turn to look at her his face so red he could pass out.

"Wh-What are you doing here?" Link choked out as Cindy strode over to the edge of the spring happily puling out her hair-tie letting her golden hair fall down her shoulders and back while a towel was wrapped around her torso ending at her mid thigh.

"Well we came to enjoy the hot spring didn't we?" The woman giggled softly before stepping into the water as Link realized that they weren't separate springs.

"Y-yeah sorry I didn't realize it was a shared bath." Link quietly commented looking away as he heard her towel slip free before she tossed it to the edge of the spring like he had.

"It's no problem sugar, I'm glad you're enjoying it." Cindy responded with a carefree tone in her voice while Link awkwardly tried to relax while not looking toward her. He had never been a naked girl, no, woman before and he didn't know what to do or how he should act.

"Y-Yeah, thank you for bringing me h-here." Link said while lowering almost completely into the water while keeping his eyes averted.

"Hehe it's nothing after everything you've done... Hero." Cindy said before she became quiet and the last word was whispered into his ear making him jump not realizing she had gotten so close to him. "Hehe why so jumpy? You're acting like you've never been around a woman before."

"I... Haven't." Link admitted looking up into her emerald green eyes.

"Oh hun, I'm sorry didn't mean to catch ya off guard." Cindy apologized softly moving to his side and reaching out to hold his cheek.

"It's alright, no harm done." Link said softly his focus locked on her, his eyes slowly began to wander seeing the way her golden hair stuck to her shoulders while it was wet, the freckles on her face sprinkled across her collar and shoulders as well, her tan as it turned out was her natural skin tone and the color traveled further down.

"S-sorry!" Link closed his eyes having caught himself looking at her large breasts but Cindy just shook her head before leaning in and pressing her soft lips against his shocking him. However, like before, he relaxed against her lips and begin to kiss the woman back as she moved a bit closer to where their legs were touching and her hand gradually slipped down to his chest feeling his firm muscle. Her finger tips danced along his lightly muscled torso feeling his flat stomach smiling against Link's lips as she felt him tremble under her touch.

With a gentle nip at his lip she guided his hand up to her breast gently kissing him deeper while her tongue glided along his lip asking his permission. Link parted his lips greeting her muscle with his own while gently squeezed her breast earning a soft moan and causing her to gently press closer, her breasts felt so soft but they had a certain firmness that felt nice. Cindy slipped her tongue along Link's in the deep kiss coaxing him into joining in eventually getting Link to lean into her while his other hand moved up around her lower back holding her.

Her hand moved back along his arm and down his side as their tongues playfully fought for control and Link started to try and please her more testing different ways of rubbing or squeezing till his thumb brushed her nipple making her moan softly into his mouth and give him a second to suck softly on her tongue. After a few more heated moments their lips parted but they wouldn't pull away from each other, each breath they took was deep as Link looked into her beautiful eyes making her smile.

"Heh, I know you probably heard rumors about me around town, like I'm the village bike, they aren't true, I'm just not afraid to go after who I want." Cindy spoke softly loving how he saw her honestly without any prejudice. "It's been a long time since I meet anyone that I felt was good enough to touch me, hero."

"I... I'm honored... and clumsy..." Link apologized blushing again but it just made Cindy smile as her right hand moved behind his head gently stroking his blonde hair while her left remained on his stomach.

"So modest." She giggled leaning in to kiss him softly. "I'll teach you how to treat a woman."'

The words made his blush worse but he nodded kissing her again, and again gently meeting her lips time and time again while she rose her left hand to the back of his right guiding it to her nipple letting her rub, turn, and softly pinch it earning a chain of soft little moans between the kisses. Having grown a little bolder Link moved the hand around her waist down to gently grab her firm full ass feeling his fingers sink in a moment before feeling muscle and making her moan a bit deeper.

"Ahh hehe, getting into it?" Cindy asked playfully before rubbing the back of his neck with her right hand coaxing him to her lips again while her left hand traveled lower over his navel and to his blonde hair to gently grasp his hardness. At first contact Link gasped soft into the kiss giving Cindy an opening to gently bite his tongue and suck on it while her hand began to glide up and down his shaft now making Link moan low. It had been the first time anyone else had ever touched him and it felt so different as his grip on her body tightened every few moans making the woman smile as she felt the effect she was having on him.

The speed of her strokes slowly increased while she pulled her lips from Link's letting him breathe and pant while she moved her lips to his neck softly kissing his fair skin and nipping it every few kisses making him shiver under her actions. Biting his lip Link looked at the golden mane of the woman on top of him seeing how gorgeous she was and he moved his hand down from her breast along her cruves and down over her stomach making her giggle and change her tactics and stopping to hold his shaft near the top while rubbing her thumb around the tip just as his fingers passed over her hairless mound and brush agaainst her lips.

"Mmm, you've got it." She encouraged feeling his fingers rub against her lips before they found her clit making her breath catch while gently squeezing his cock and stroking him again. "Play with the button, sugar"

Link took her directions to heart as his fingers ran along her hot lips letting his thumb gently roll over her clit tracing small circles around it making her own body shiver like his did but she was working him to the edge as he felt the familiar heat in his abdomen. Slowly his fingers slipped inside causing her to gasp and release a moan into his neck while her grip sped up making Link moan with her in turn as his hips jerked up.

"Let it out hun," Cindy coaxed as she moved her hand faster while Link tried to reciprocate the pleasure but his hand moved away to grab her hip just before he let out a loud moan and his hips bucked feeling the built up tension release as his cum shot out into the water between them. A soft giggle slipped past Cindy's lips while she gently slowed her strokes milking his cock until he was finished and when she leaned up she gave Link a look with a raised eyebrow before looking back at the cloud of off white in the water. "Backed up hero?"

"Well, I haven't really had a chance in like, a week." Link teased her back blushing, his body felt numb but not like cold or like his foot fell asleep, it was a warm tingling that ran through his body.

"Acquisition complete: Arrows retrieved." a familiar mechanized voice ruined the moment as Link jumped turning around to see the bird shield drop a full quiver before returning to it's shield form.

"Um... hun I know people suggest protection but I'm not That dangerous am I?" Cindy asked teasingly and as Link turned around to explain she kissed him deep to silence the hero and get him back in the mood.

"Hehe ready to go all the way?" Cindy asked with a soft smile on her lips her green eyes glittering, Link couldn't find the words to respond and nodded his head. She leaned in kissing him soft before waving her hands through the water between them clearing it a bit before she slipped her leg over Link's straddling him. Her hand trailed across his body again until reaching his shaft and gently wrapped her fingers around it giggling as she felt how hard he still was. "Eager."

Link blushed deeply and his hands found their way to her wide hips gently holding on as he felt her move, lifting out of the water slightly while her hand gently brushed his tip between her hot lips causing both blondes to shiver. A moment later she slowly lowered herself moaning low and long feeling his hard cock push into her and spread her tight walls open. The heat alone made Link gasp and dig his fingers into her hips gently pushing up to meet her hips with his sheathing his shaft in her heat.

Once Cindy was all the way down she smiled and lean into Link kissing him deeply while her silken walls tightened around him. They stayed like that just enjoying the feel of each other before she began to slowly rock her body against his making them both moan as her tight wet heat slid along his sensitive cock and his veins gently scraped along her walls. Link grasped her waist and start to move with her pushing his hips up to meet hers making her gasp and bounce slightly while biting her lip. In a few cycles of their passionate rocking the two found their rhythm as she bounced along his shaft and he thrust up to meet her as her hips fell.

"Ahhh sugar, you feel so good." Cindy gasped holding the back of Link's neck with one hand while her other hand kept her balance on his chest. "You're hitting, oh, the right spot."

Link's moans came out with staggered breaths as he thrust his hips harder at her encouragement holding on tighter feeling her work him up again. "You're so tight, I-I think I'm going to-"

"Do it sugar let out for me." Cindy begged moving her arm from Link's chest to his side feeling her nails gently dig into his skin as she tightened even more. Link bit his lip and grabbed her ass as he felt his muscles tighten and he bucked again moaning out loudly with Cindy, she could feel his cock jerk inside of her and even more she felt the thick shots of his seed spurt into her coating her tight walls while Link felt a hot surge around his shaft as their bodies were wracked with sensual shocks and making Link's mind go white from the discharge.

A few seconds later he blinked and his surroundings became clearer, there that golden mane was again. Cindy was resting happily on top of him while her fingers dance along his skin and her walls stayed tight around him after their mutual orgasm. Link couldn't help but smile and hold onto her while rubbing her back. "You're incredible."

"Hehe you're just saying that hero." Cindy giggled looking up at him with a serene smile on her lips. "Why don't you spend the night with me?"

"That 'd be nice." Link agreed leaning down to kiss her again before they separated and got out of the 'impure' water. After drying off and getting their clothes again the two headed back down to Kakariko refreshed and finding solace in each other for the night.


	11. PRAISE THE SUN!

**11\. PRAISE THE SUN!**

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 **Thank you to Andromeda's Protector and LogosLogic for your reviews ^^ There's gonna be a fair amount of fanservice/easter eggs in this chapter.**

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The feel of a wet drop on his face made Link blink his eyes open to see a dark heavily clouded sky above him as light drops of rain fell from above. With a light stretch he felt two bodies and his eyes darted up feeling the soft warmth he was slowly becoming used to seeing the Gerudo goddess smiling down at him as Link seemed to be laying on her lap with his blonde hair brushing against her flat exposed stomach while her fingers brushed through his hair.

Link discovered he wasn't as shocked anymore though as his gaze dropped he saw a young girl, probably a bit younger than Rodana curled into his side happily napping while half laying on his left side, his hand held to her chest. She wore simple dark green shorts and a sleeveless loose shirt though she wore no shoes, evident by the dirt on the bottom of her feet, her hair was a bright verdant green like leaves with the sun shining through them and the tips of long ears pointed through her hair.

The scene made him smile as he relaxed gently holding her hand while his body relaxed into the Gerudo's body. With another glance around the area he saw that many of the burned trees had fallen over while small trees began to grow again though still only saplings. His gaze then moved to the woman in blue who laid to his right, this time she laid asleep with her face buried in her arms like a child when the curtains were pulled open from a window, the blindfold that once covered her face laid a foot away slowly dissolving into water.

"Wisdom is still searching... Though Courage has awoken..." A high but soft voice caught Link's attention and he looked to the girl in green to see her brilliant green eyes staring up at him with a big smile on her face before a bright golden flash shone from her chest making him close his eyes again from the light.

~X~

As Link's eyes opened this time he found a beautiful golden haired woman laying in front of him still asleep while the sheets draped over them both made it clear they were both naked beneath. A red blush spread across his face as he remembered the night before although it made him hold her a bit closer realizing now where his hands were and they moved slowly rubbing her body feeling her soft curves and the muscle she had developed beneath. Link's eyes closed again as he felt up her back and her leg tightened on his own nestling herself closer and making him feel her breasts against his chest as she made soft sounds under her breath. His hand moved a little lower to her round full ass which made Cindy moan low before her soft lips claimed his again kissing him slow and full of care before she smiled and pulled back.

"Ya know sugar, I think those last few rounds made me sore~3" The woman teased as Link's eyes opened seeing her emerald ones staring into his while her lips were curled into that playful smirk.

"Mmm, is that a no?" Link teased back as he rubbed her body so keenly aware of her her figure flowed together so beautifully. Though that was before Cindy lightly smacked his hand and sat up.

"No." The woman spoke clearly as she sat up letting the sheets fall to her lap exposing her beautiful body and Link noticed the tan lines across her skin though her lips still had that playful smirk as her golden hair fell down across her back while she stretched before getting out of bed. "So what's the plan today sugar?"

"I... Didn't plan that far ahead." Link admitted as he thought about heading to Solvale though he would have to get Volga first, he prayed that Baris hadn't tried to dissect him and sell him in portions.

"Hmmm, so you planned last night?" Cindy commented playfully as she went over to her closet giving him a full view of her full rear and the unruly gold mane that covered her back as she picked through finding clothes.

"Not a chance, you're way out of my league." Link smiled as he sat up seeing his clothes on the floor beside him.

"Hush, don't talk about yourself like that." Cindy snapped the playfulness and teasing in her voice disappeared while she grabbed her clothes.

"Would last night have happened if I was twice as wide?" Link asked her slipping his pants on while he heard her sigh before her hand caught his shoulder and pulled him down onto his back before leaning over him and kissing him deeply upside down. Her warm soft lips silenced him as he reached up brushing his fingers through her hair until she pulled back from him her green eyes serious.

"Yes, it would have happened even if you were a girl with pigtails and wielding crossbows." Cindy said matter-of-factly before leaning up to get dressed in clothes similar to what he had seen her wear before though they were less smudged and dirty. Once she was dressed she slipped her hands around the back of her neck to bring her hair out from her top before reaching out to grab her hat from the bed post.

"You're still half-dressed hero." Link blushed again realizing he had been staring at the woman before sitting back up and grabbing his shirt, mail, and tunic before slipping them on over his head making Cindy chuckle softly.

"Still too much protection for lil ol' me sugar." Cindy teased and blew him a kiss before walking out of the bedroom leaving Link to turn red and glance at the shield that hung from the bed post on his side. At least it didn't pop off again last night.

"You're incredible you know?" Link called out as he finished collecting his things and followed her into her kitchen and living room where she stood by her counter getting a small lough of bread before splitting it in two and tossing him half.

"Oh I know." Cindy responded with that same glimmer in her eyes before turning to open a chest that let out a pale smoke when she opened it and retrieved a jar. "Apple preserves, wanna try?"

"Sure, what is that though?" The blonde asked and moved over to her to see what she was doing as she opened the jar and grabbed a spoon before making a divot in her bread and spooning some of the preserves in and doing the same with his bread before handing it back.

"Oh it's an enchanted chest, it keeps things cold for me, got it a couple years back from a yeti." Cindy explained happily though the information about a yeti shocked him, he knew they were one of the newer races to start integrating but hadn't seen or heard much of them. Link then took a bite of the bread and froze as he tasted the apple infused with brown sugar and quickly devoured the bread. Cindy just giggled however as she ate hers and put away the jaw while sucking the spoon clean. "I call it the Apple Jack Special, named it after one of Talio's fillies."

"It tastes so good, haven't had anything like that since I left home." Link replied though the mirth sapped away as he said so thinking back about his home and how little progress he had made in over a week since he left.

"Hun?..." Cindy quietly tried to get his attention not realizing how long he had been quiet making him smile embarrassed before rubbing the back of his head.

"Sorry about that, got home sick." The young man admitted quietly while Cindy touched his cheek offering him a small smile before walking past him to her table and sitting waiting for him to join her.

"So tell me hero, what are you really doing out here? Besides breaking the hearts of innocent green eyed produce sellers?" She asked him with a soft smile and reaching over to hold his hand.

"I... Long story short, I'm looking for my brother, he went to Castle Town before the lock down, I've had some people say that someone in Solvale can help me so that's probably where I'm heading next." Link said while drawing random patterns on the surface of the wooden table with his finger.

"I know you must be worried, but if he's anything like you I'm positive he's fine." Cindy said reassuringly.

"Bigger, stronger, not as smart." Link replied with a small smile though Cindy caught the brim of her hat and took it off to fan herself with it like she was hot.

"Oh sugar don't tease me like that, I couldn't handle a burly version of you~" The woman swooned playfully loving the look she was getting out of Link as he shot a glare at her before she finally broke out laughing.

"Adopted brother." Link muttered which just made Cindy laugh louder filling the small building with her soft laughter.

"Oh sugar don't be jealous, I told you I'm picky." Cindy smiled leaning over to kiss Link's nose before standing up with a wide grin as she slipped her hat back on. "Well as it happens, I have a shipment coming in from Solvale in soon, I'm sure I could convince them to give you a ride there, though it won't be as much fun as the ride I gave you3"

"Really? That's amazing, thank you so much!" Link stood up shocked that she could make it happen, not because he doubted her just that she was able to help him so much. He rounded the table and pulled her inot him so quick she made a noise of shock before relaxing in his arms and hugging his shoulders. "And I don't think anyone could give me as good of a ride as you did."

"Heh, damn right." The woman smiled into Link's neck taking a moment to relax in the afterglow before she stepped back and gently booped his nose with her finger. "Well let's go hero, I still gotta open the shop and you had better make sure you're ready to head out."

"Yeah you're right." Link answered reluctant to let her step away from him but he remembered Volga as she told him to be prepared. "Fuck..."

"Heh we don't have time, what is it?" Cindy teased as she took him outside and began to lead him through the streets.

"I forgot I need to get a friend before I leave, I left him with Baris last night." Link commented as he followed her not remembering the way they took to get there but figured he found his way to the main street as long as he followed the sounds of people.

"Baris? She had a guy over? I thought she was an explosexual." Cindy commented thoughtfully, he was about to ask how they knew each other but since he was from a small village he figured everyone knew everyone until you got to places as big as Castle Town or Goron City.

"Yeah he was... helping her with a new bomb." Link quietly said not sure what she would think of Volga being a dragon.

"Ah that explains both parts of it." Cindy responded giggling softly. "She has never shown interest in much of anything besides bombs and Rodana."

"Oh, it's good they have each other." Link said in response thinking of them kind of like Ganondorf and himself, though he didn't notice as they stepped out onto the main road.

"Heh, well this is where we part ways for now hero, see ya soon." Cindy smiled and kissed his cheek before heading off towards her store leaving Link to head to the Bomb Emporium to see the fate of his red-scaled friend.

"Baris?... Volga?..." Link quietly called out as he stepped into the dark building only able to make his way through the metal structure thanks to the few streams of light piercing into the building from windows. As he made his way up the stairs to Baris' workshop he heard a loud sound which he instantly recognized as snoring thanks to his brother. The blonde shook his head as he climbed the last few steps and saw Baris asleep at her table with Volga asleep on top of her shoulders. Link couldn't help but smile as he looked around, a large glass jar filled with what looked like red sand was probably shavings of Volga's scales, a pale blue bomb sat in front of Baris without a fuse that she happened to be holding, a few feet away laid his bomb bag filled with the fruits of her efforts.

"Heh... When she sets her mind she works hard." Link spoke softly as he put away the refilled bomb bag before slipping the fuse from her hand and picking up the red head. Volga yawned and shifted at the movement moving along his arm to his shoulder before resting once more while Link carried her up another set of stairs before laying her in her bed and pulling the sheets over her. On his way back down he heard another loud snore that made him grin as he made his way out and locked the door behind him so no one would intrude on her.

"Mmm hey... I changed my mind, she's cool." Volga muttered tired, Link had no doubt the two were up late working though the shift the dragon had over the course of the night amused him compared to the fear of her chopping him up the night before.

"How'd that go by the way?" Link asked while reaching up to pet the dragon noticing he was now distinctly a shade brighter then before.

"Awesome~ She gave me a bath, got tons of soot off, got me like 3 pounds of meat... Mmm... Oh and she just groomed be to get the scales, what she needed was pretty much like dead skin for me." Volga explained spreading one of his wings showing off his shiny bright red scales now polished and devoid of the darkening soot. "So how was your night?"

"It was... Eventful... Got a way to the next town." Link commented quietly while Volga raised one of his brows looking at him.

"Your neck got warmer when I asked that, bad liar." The dragon quipped before laying its head back down leaving the blonde to quietly fume while they made their way to Cindy's shop by Eldin's spring. Although before he opened the door he heard the call of a hawk pierce the sky and looked up for it although the sudden movement shook the dragon. "What are you doing?"

"You didn't hear the hawk?" Link looked over to Volga who closed his eyes once more.

"You're hearing things, there's no hawk, my hearing is better than yours." The dragon commented sure of himself. The attitude the little wyrm was giving him was making him debate dropping the spitfire from his shoulder but he just shook his head before pushing the door open.

"Hey Cindy? I'm back." Link called out since he saw that the 'closed' sign still hadn't been flipped over to 'open'. Volga quietly looked around curious seeing a real shop for the first time and looking over all the fruit and vegetables as Link walked along the counter.

"Yeah hun I'm in the back, one sec!" The woman's voice called out and Link reached up to slip Volga off his shoulders and onto the counter where he began to look around of his own accord. Link continued along to the back and as he stepped through the door way he was hit with a large bag of apples, he had been in this position before. His hands scrambled to grab the bag so it wouldn't hit the ground while he sighed in discomfort from the abrupt assault via fruit. "Good catch, help me stock up."

"Could've given me some warning." Link lightly glared at the woman who simply gave him a huge grin while she herself carried four bags of equal size instantly making him feel inadequate compared to the powerful woman but he shook his head and walked out into the store with her close behind him though her high-pitched eep caught his attention as she froze in place staring at Volga.

"D-D-Dragon..." Cindy quietly stuttered as Volga looked up at her tilting his head before moving along the counter towards her. "It's gonna eat me..."

"No no it's okay this is Volga he's the friend I told you about, I met him on Death Mountain." Link calmly explained reaching over to hold her shoulder, her wide gaze moved to him before nodding while Volga bowed his head towards her respectfully.

"Pleasure to meet you ma'am, from what I've read you have an amazing amount of variety for this section of Hyrule." Volga happily spoke having already looked over each of the stalls positioned around her shop.

"I... Um... Thank you. Volga." She calmed but was confused as the dragon complimented her however she quickly overcame her lapse in composure thanks to Volga inflating her pride. "I'm happy to have some of the best produce available even compared to Castle Town."

"It really is impressive, you have Faronian and Ordonian vegetables, Eldinae and Tabanthan wheat, Hebran roots, Lanayus fruits, and oceanic fruit. Your selection is truly amazing." Volga said while his tail swayed, which as far as Link could tell meant he was interested in the topic. Wait, Hebran and Tabanthan? "Personally I love Gerudan plums."

"Well, well, our hero here never told me he had such a cultured friend." Cindy cooed setting down her sacks of produce before leaning forward to stroke along Volga's neck. "Well, stock from the Gerudo, Tabantha, and Hebra areas are pretty rare... Buuuut I've got a secret stash and you're just the cutest little thing."

"Where are Tabantha and Hebra?.." Link asked out of hand though the looks he got from Cindy and Volga instantly made him feel stupid as Cindy walked behind her counter and Link heard a chest open before she came back up and set a bright purple round fruit with small fleshy spikes covering it down before Volga who instantly bit into it eating happily.

"Well you are from the boonies if you haven't heard of them. Tabantha is a relatively new territory to the North-West of Hyrule, it's mostly made up of snowy mountains and the Yetis occupy the area, it used to be a part of Lanayru but the Zora really aren't interested in the cold. Tabantha is between the Gerudo Desert and the Tabantha Tundra, it's easiest to call it highlands and the area was recently explored and found a new race lives there, the Rito tribe, a civilization like the Goron or Zora." Cindy explained while she pet Volga and met Link's gaze, the information was amazing to think that whole new areas of Hyrule were still being discovered and explored, though it wasn't that surprising since the mountain range beyond Kakariko and Death Mountain hid a vast ocean that spanned far to the south ringing Faron and Ordon.

"That's awesome, wonder if I'll be able to see it some day." Link commented thinking of the highlands Cindy spoke of unaware of the huge smile she wore happy to see such a look on the young boy.

"So pure, that's one of the reasons I chose you." The woman commented before looking down at Volga whose face and claws were covered in purple juice from the plum. With a soft peck of her lips on his scaled head she slipped away to grab her produce again and begin to fill the stalls. "Come on hero, help me before my shipment gets here."

"R-Right sorry." Link stammered as he moved to where he remembered the apples were and began to fill it while Cindy danced around making the job look effortless and coming to drape herself over his shoulders done with her four sacks by the time he was done with his one.

"Mmm thanks sugar." Cindy whispered in his ear before kissing below it and slipping away stealing the empty sack from his grasp while Link was left standing there blushing. "Flip the sign for me?"

Without an answer the young Hylian moved like he was mindless to the door and flipped the sign that hung behind the glass for her while Cindy got a wet cloth and began to wipe down her counters and wiping away the little juice leftover from Volga's snack, who had now transferred to her shoulder.

"Mk and that's done." Cindy happily said looking over her shop ready to do business as she grabbed a jug from behind the counter and proceeded to walk over to him hooking an arm around Link's before going out the door with him in tow. The bright light of the sun made Link wince as he moved with Cindy letting her guide him while his eyes adjusted as she pushed him down onto a bench, and as his vision came into focus he saw her smiling above him before moving to sit beside him and taking a drink from her jug before offering it to him.

"What is it?" Link asked cautiously taking it and sniffing it which earned him a jab in the side from the woman.

"It's juice, dork, I wouldn't give a kid booze." Cindy shot him a look jabbing at him for the assumption. With a shrug he trusted her and took a drink tasting the sweet yet tangy flavor, after another drink he handed it back while she smiled and watched him. "Can you tell what it is?"

"it's familiar, like strawberries." Link commented as he thought about the taste.

"Exactly, Fresh from the base of the volcano, the ash and heat bring out their flavor better than wild strawberries." Cindy happily responded but as her gaze moved she sighed while a wagon pulled up and a young girl happily waved at Cindy. As she hoped down Link saw a cascade of straight pink hair and pale alabaster skin as she ran over to hug Cindy as she stood up. "Hey Shy, how was the trip?"

"B-Bumpy, but ok-kay." The young girl answered happily before seeing Link and shifting behind Cindy as she peeked at him. "H-Hi."

"This is Cheyenne, she brings me some of the best roots around, though she's so bashful I just call her Shy for short." cindy explained with a smile as she ruffled the pinkette's hair. "Shy this is Link, I wanted to ask if you could take him back to Solvale with you, he's helped out Kakariko a lot and I wanna return the favor."

"I g-guess I could, c-can he shoot a b-bow though? I-I was going to hire s-someone anyway." Shy asked quietly looking between the two blondes.

"Can he shoot a bow? Of course he can shoot a b- you can shoot a bow right?" Cindy started confidently before realizing she had no idea and looked back to the Hylian who quietly pulled a bow from his sack.

"I hunt for my village, so yeah I can shoot." Link confirmed which made Cindy regain her grin and pat Shy's head.

"See? You got an archer!" The woman declared before moving around to the back of the wagon and grabbing a few sacks of the roots she had mentioned and taking them inside.

"Nice to meet you." Link offered with a smile holding his hand out to the pinkette though she simply stepped back and her turquoise eyes darted over him. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you."

"It's ok-kay, it not y-you." The girl offered with a small smile her hair falling to cover one of her eyes before she moved around to the front of the wagon to pet her horse. Volga and Link quietly watched and before either could do anything else Cindy kissed his cheek out of nowhere.

"well this is it hero, come back to see me some time okay?" The woman asked with a smile while Shy moved around to climb onto the wagon.

"Yeah, I'll try to." Link answered with a small smile while Volga nodded.

"Good, Shy take care of my boys okay?" Cindy called over to her friend who smiled at her and nodded her head. Cindy returned her smile before moving so that Link could climb into the back of the wagon. "And you both look out for her."

"You got it, thanks again Cindy, for everything." Link spoke softly looking into the woman's emerald eyes.

"Don't mention it sugar, now get before you make me blush." Cindy chided him before stepping away and waving to Shy who then moved the reigns and making the horse move forward. As they moved along the main road Link waved back to Cindy who used her hat to wave back sending them off.

"Hm she's extraordinary." Volga happily commented pleased with their progress and Cindy herself while Link smiled and watched her head back inside.

"Yeah tell me about it." Link responded softly before finally sighing and looking ahead as the narrow path Shy took out of Kakariko passed the path up to Death Mountain and slowly began to spread open into a large canyon.

Link now understood why she was looking for protection, a spot like this could be a death trap if someone was organized enough to try and take on a caravan moving through the canyon. Better safe than sorry, Link reached back to get an arrow and set it in his bow while he kept a look out feeling antsy as he saw large outcroppings coming up that looked almost like giant roots spanning the canyon like stitches.

"And if you look deep in her eyes~ She will put you in trances~" Cheyenne sang quietly to herself, she didn't seem to worried as she kept to herself, Link figured she wasn't concerned since she had just made the journey through here. With her carefree attitude he relaxed a bit while Volga slept on his shoulders still recovering from his all-nighter with Baris.

As they passed under the stone pillars he saw a few birds and lizards but nothing out of the ordinary like Bokoblins though the sudden dip of the road made Link's heart jump and pulling his gaxe forward again. Seeing they had reached the vast Eldin plain though as he looked back he saw a steep ramp roughly 3 feet in height where the canyon spilled out to the road they were on now.

"Hehe, it g-gets everyone the first t-time, they say the pl-plain fell a few feet wh-when the other land f-fell." Cheyenne softly explained, though before Link could ask the bright reflection of the sun caught his attention to the East where it glittered off the ocean. It was the first time Link had ever seen the ocean and he was silenced by the huge expanse of water that sprawled out to border the plain. "I know it's pr-pretty but keep your op-pen."

"Right, got it." Link shook his head after Cheyenne's warning and steeled his focus just as he heard a monstrous cry and looked up in time to see a beast that looked like some kind of mutated hawk diving towards them. With a firm pull on the bowstring, Link's other arm raised the bow aiming on a dime to fire his arrow straight into the creature's eye socket downing it in one shot. However as he reached for another the wagon lurched forward putting him off balance as his gaze shot forward anticipating another threat. However he was completely mistaken as Shy was now leaning forward and the horse had shot forward like an arrow and she was leading it like an expert.

"Watch the ground!" Shy called back and Link moved around to get a better vantage around him while drawing another arrow in his bow. The ground around them seemed to twist before puffs of dirt shot up a few yards ahead of their path, what looked like green blobs with teeth emerged and started toward the wagon but Link fired before they could move more than an inch. He didn't know what they were but he was sure they were the problem. The rough speed of the wagon forced Link to crouch or risk getting thrown from the wagon though he could still see well enough and could hear the grinding of the dirt as they emerged over the galloping of the horse. "Almost there!"

Link looked up ahead of them to see what looked like a city wreathed in twilight as it seemed to shine like metal. More than that though there looked like there was a bubble over the city and they were coming up on it fast. A few more of the blobs appeared along the road but Link quickly shot them down with no issue. However with his focus on the road he had neglected the sky and after he had let the last arrow fly he saw another of the flying creatures however it's beat was no less than a foot from his chest and he felt time slow to a crawl. In that single instant a tint of gold passed over his eyes and the back of his hand as he grabbed the handle of his sword and swung with all the force his one arm would muster cleaving the bird apart with a Mortal Draw. Time snapped back just as quickly as it slowed and Link closed his eyes as blood showered his arm and the halves of the bird fell to the road moments before they passed through the barrier.

"What was that..." Link quietly looked at his sword not even sure how it ended up in his hand or how he managed to react like that.

"The fliers are Kargaroc and the blobs are Leevers." Shy answered out of turn not even looking back at Link as she coaxed the horse to calm down as hey trotted toward what looked like the main street for the city. Although rather than heading down the road Cheyenne pulled up along side the first building and slowing to a stop.

"Th-thank you for your service s-sir, we have arrived." Now she turned to look at him and let out a nervous eep seeing the creature's blood that soaked his sword and arm. Her hands closed over her mouth as she looked it up and down before grabbing a jug that sat behind her in the wagon and handing it to him. "w-water... so you c-can wipe it off."

"Thank you, for this and the ride." Link offered her a light smile as he uncorked the the jug and poured some of the water along his arm directing the flow to the ground beside the wagon as best he could while seeing the dark crimson leave the iron and green of his tunic. Satisfied with the low amount of water he used Link resealed the jug before setting it down and hoping out of the wagon which woke Volga and his claws clung to his chain mail.

"What happened? Where are we?" Volga tiredly asked looking around at the few buildings that were in view from where they were. Link just shook his head before looking back to Shy.

"We'll be on our way, thanks again." Link bowed his head to the girl which earned him a light smile and she nodded before whipping the reigns again directing her horse along the outer edge of the city. After she had gone a fair distance Link turned o round the corner and head down the road enjoying the views the city had to offer. The large buildings certainly stood out including the shine everything seemed to have as people looked around at vendors like Kakariko but their were bigger buildings as well though Link wasn't sure what they were.

"Come one! Come all! See the magnificent sword swallower perform!" A man called out standing on a stage long the wall of one of the buildings, as far as he could tell it was an act of some sort but he didn't really have time for it or the blood bath from the act going wrong.

"This is Solvale?" Volga quietly asked looking around at all the people while Link moved down the street.

"Seems so, guess the name should have given it away." Link commented while he looked at a few of the larger buildings with people going in and out while shielding his eyes from the reflected light. However his stride was interrupted as he walked into something extremely hard making him fall back.

"Ow what the hell is a wall doing in the middle of th- ...uh oh." Link began to complain rubbing his head before he looked up and instantly regretted not paying attention. Before him stood not a wall but a man, a man easily two heads taller than his brother and almost twice as wide built out of muscle from what he could tell. "I... I'm sorry."

"Nonsense! I'm sorry my boy!" The man declared as he bent down to offer Link a hand and help him up. He looked nice enough despite his huge stature, a blonde handlebar mustache hid his mouth while a simple curl of hair sat atop his bald head and his blue eyes stared into Link's with an intensity that made the young man pause before taking the man's hand. Once he had, the man's large hand closed around his and pulled him up off the ground with a bit more air than Link expected and he staggered to keep his footing as his feet hit the ground. "I was standing here debating on what kind of book I wished to get from the library today, I recently finished a tome detailing the properties of all of the fauna in the Eldin region and it was quite exhilarating indeed!"

"It's no problem sir, I wasn't watching where I was going." Link quietly explained surprised such a muscle-bound man enjoyed reading, guess you can't judge a book by it's cover.

"It's quite fine young man, I am Alexander Strongarm, if I may ask what were you looking for? I've lived here for quite some time so I'm positive I cane be of assistance!" Alexander proclaimed proudly as his head gleamed briefly from the light. Wait was that a sparkle?...

"I'm Link, right now I'm looking for someone called Magus, two men named Talio and Renado told me he could help me get somewhere." Link explained though the look on the man's face instantly changed from happy to suspicious as he began to look Link over noting the traces of blood covering his arm.

"Well then young man, I have good and bad news for you. I know Magus personally, however I am also his bodyguard, and you can see how it looks to have someone randomly looking for my employer, covered in weaponry and sporting blood stains." Alexander explained which boosted his spirits but instantly dashed his hoped as well. He looked over himself quietly not meaning to come off as a threat but considering the man's job he understood what he meant. "I'm sorry young man but I can not in good conscience take you to hi-"

"Is that a dragon?" A voice cut off Alexander from behind Link and he spun quickly to see a tall man in dark glasses and a trench coat inspecting Volga on his shoulder. As the dragon looked back at him still not terribly used to people. "How much you want for him? Immortality would be nice."

"My friend is not for sale." Link glared at the man and reached up to grab the handle of his sword while Volga let out a sound and disappeared down Link's shirt. However a powerful force surrounded his forearm and Link looked back to see Alexander stopping him from pulling the blade free.

"Now now, no need to get violent, I respect you wanting to protect your friend, Alexander he's fine." the man waved his hand toward Alexander and the man's hand released Link's arm which he slowly lowered while Volga's head popped up under Link's chin looking at the man.

"Magus I presume?" Link asked putting together Alexander's rather forceful change in demeanor once Link had become hostile.

"The one and only, the grand architect of Solvale, I even created the barrier you passed through, it keeps the monsters out." The man claimed proudly with a smile, his voice boisterous and filling the block they stood on. Now that Link got a better look at him he took note of a green crystalline scepter that he held in his hand like a cane though it looked obviously magical.

"I'm Link, I was told you could get me into Castle Town." Link said quietly not expecting the man before him to in fact be the person who built the city.

"Ah yes, I can make that happen. Walk with me." Magus said before walking past Link and Alexander expecting them to follow though Link and Volga shared a look before following after him. "As I said before I built this city myself, that clock tower? Built it. The strip club? Built it. The Library?... I did not build that. Alexander they have a permit correct?"

"Yes sir." Alexander responded promptly to Magus' question.

"Ah good, we also have a variety of shops and services here. The black smith's guild for arms and armour. The weaver's guild for clothing. The assassin's guild. The alchemist's guild which our friend Alex takes part in. The butchery, which works with the assassin's guild from time to ti- I should look into that. Alex make note please." Magus listed a variety of places while leading Link through the city and gesturing to the mentioned places before pausing to think about the connection between the wholesale murder of people and the sale of fresh meat. Link paused briefly looking at the shields on display outside the blacksmith's shop, though as he did Magus lowered his shades looking at the clockwork shield on his back. "Oh wow you found my shield!"

"Your shield?" Link quietly questioned looking at it over his shoulder before slipping it off.

"Yeah I was working on that a year or two ago when it got stolen."' Magus explained as he took the shield and examined it fondly. "I've made better designs but man does it take me back.

"It sucks... It left me when I fought a lava beast and came back when I was... naked." Link complained before catching himself still shy about his night.

"Hey hey to be fair, it wasn't completed, where did you find it?" Magus said in the shield's defense while flipping it over and messing with the components, his staff standing on its tip effortlessly.

"At the top of Death Mountain." Volga commented as he watched Magus tinker leaving Link somewhat bored before Magus handed it back to him.

"There ya go, for the most part it was a priority issue and I've also reconnected the energy barrier so it can deflect magic attacks now." The man said happily while Link looked over the shield quietly, still looked like the same scrap that had left him defenseless on a volcano but he shrugged taking the man's word for it.

"Thanks, so about Castle town?" Link began to question as Magus nodded his head and grabbed his staff before beginning to lead him once more.

"The issue with your request is that Solvale is a very... neutral place, I won't go out of my way to deal with threats facing Hyrule unless said threat ultimately threatens Solvale, you can imagine how the kingdom sees us. So in light of that, I can get you in but it won't be easy." The rather ecliptic man explained while he lead Link down a few streets until they reached a large building with a glittering golden sign.

"The Hive?" Link quietly read aloud while Magus stepped inside opening the door with a gesture of his emerald staff.

"Why yes this is my lounge and home, I find pleasures should be kept close at hand while relaxing." The man said as Link followed him in and almost instantly his nose was assailed with an extremely sweet scent like perfume and honey mixed together. A firm though gentle hand caught his back as Alexander politely ushered him further. It seemed the large man didn't quite fancy the Hive either, Link couldn't guess why but as he followed Magus onto the floor a deep red blush formed on his face. He could guess now.

Hordes of women flitted about the area clad in skimpy insect themed outfits with glittering wings attached to their backs while they served the men and women lounging in booths with drinks and cigars, the floor was jet black while the booths were clad in purple velvet and pink and purple lights moved through the lounge coloring the smoke.

A light cough pushed through Link's throat as the smoke of the patrons finally hit him though he stayed focus on Magus and followed him along the edge of the room while graciously moving out of the way of the women. Link's gaze narrowed slightly not sure what to think of the man as he continued along before passing through another set of doors. Before Link stepped through the doors he felt rumbling under his feet and that alone made him nervous as he followed the man inside.

Link froze mid-stride seeing a large track of some sort dug into the ground with two black orbs racing underneath a steel grate. Women in shiny black plate walked around the room taking bets from people that leaned on the barrier watching as the orbs raced along the track. In Link's momentary hesitation he lost track of Magus and looked around for the man for a few moments before he finally caught site of him. He sat at the back of the room in a large booth all his own with a girl in his lap around Link's age with blonde hair down up in pig tails and what looked like gems on her cheeks, that much was strange but Link could swear he saw her wings twitching on the bee girl's back as he approached to stand at the side of the booth.

"Ah Link my boy, this is Agathia my favorite girl here and my personal waitress." Magus told him though Link simply raised his eye brow. The girl in question simply giggled curled into his side as she fluttered her long lashes at Link wh looked back while tilting his head slightly, she was cute sure but he guessed Cindy made his taste more... womanly?

"Um nice to meet you? Magus how is this relevant?" Link looked back to the man now aware of he emerald and amethyst rings worn on his fingers that clutched the emerald staff.

"Manners young man, and I see you eyeing my scepter, a great magician in dark purple armor gave it to me when I was a boy, he said it has the power to send people to a shadow realm but I can never quite get it to work." Magus commented blandly and aiming the wide end with the large crystal set into it at a man chained to the wall before a swirling black mass appeared that simply made the man disappear. "It creates a gravity well that just crushes people... Oh don't worry about him though, he was imprisoned on four counts of child rape."

Link could only stare at where the man had been, the only remnants left were the few drops of blood on the shackles that now hung from the wall. While the man's status as a criminal did dull Link's compassion it still felt off to see someone killed so callously. With a quick shake of his head Link looked back at the scepter taking note of the shape before pointing to the tapered end opposite the orb.

"Have you tried the other end?" Link quietly offered which made Magus laugh loudly filling the room though no one but Link Agathia and Alexander seemed to notice.

"Oh that's rich, you see the big crystal here? That is typically the place where magic comes from. It's not like I can just flip it around and say 'I banish you to the realm of shadows!' and expect it to wo-" While Magus was laughing and speaking he actively flipped the scepter around holding it like a wand but before he could finish what he was saying a black bolt shot out underneath a barrel in the corner beside them and black hands shot up out of a portal grabbing onto the barrel and pulling it within before the portal closed with the echoes of the damned disappearing from the air. "Well... I was wrong, we never speak of this again."

"Right..." Link silently said while rubbing the back of his head noticing that Alexander seemed to have taken his leave while his charge was in his home, as far as Link could tell. Volga however had disappeared into Link's shirt again probably frightened by on or both of the magic forces they both had just witnessed.

"So anyway back on topic... Tell me why you need to get into Castle Town." Magus calmly shifted the subject while idly spinning the magic staff between his fingers looking at Link through his dark glasses.

"My brother left our home before the darkness fell to tell the castle about the monster we fought, I left to follow after him but I was told they were under lock down and that you could help me. So I ended up here, Talio and Renado suggested I look for you." Link calmly explained hearing a bout of cheering and boos from the patrons as a race seemed to be completed.

"Ah, both good men, Talio is gifted with horses which I love and Renado helped take care of Agathia not too long ago when she was fiercely ill." Magus spoke calmly and looking at the bee girl fondly when he spoke of her. "Well if both of them are endorsing you then I can't very well turn you down, however I will require a favor from you in the future, nothing too taxing I'm sure, what do you say?"

"You've got a deal, I have to find my brother." Link quietly agreed as his Blue eyes stared into Magus's with shear determination.

"Good, good, now then." Magus stated with a large smile before tapping the end of his scepter against the floor and a crate materialized beside the man's large seat. "Let's get started."


	12. The Trials we Face

**12\. The Trials we Face.**

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 **Thanks to Count Grishnackh, Light, and LogosLogic for your time reviews ^^. After the last chapter I wanted to ask my readers what they think of the fanservice and references, if you all don't like it I'm willing to tone it back but there is one bit in particular that will be part of the story regardless. Thanks again to everyone who reads and please share ^^**

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 _Meanwhile at Hyrule Castle..._

"The sun is shining, the birds are singing, and I... am going to sleep." The princess sighed while pulling off her cloak and overly elegant clothing that she had to wear as the princess. Long pinkish white gloves, a skirt, and that damned dress, the times when she got to wear the clothes Impa gave her always fit the best since her body didn't feel like every movement was trying to make her trip over herself.

"It's rather improper to sleep through the day." Impa commented with a smile leaning against the foot of the bed while Zelda shot a glare at her not bothering to change into her sleeping gown before climbing into bed.

"Don't care, 'royalty' is my father's problem." Zelda snapped while pulling out her hair clips letting her golden hair down before laying down in her large plush bed. When she was younger Zelda remembered all the times her mother and father had told her that one day she would one day have to shoulder the kingdom herself and while she was expecting it when it didn't come after her eighteenth birthday she began to lose interest in the kingdom and instead started to focus on her 'inheritance' the Triforce of Wisdom.

"I know little one... Rest well." Impa cooed softly while stroking Zelda's hair to help her sleep. They had known each other since the princess was hardly four years old and she understood her frustration with not knowing where she was supposed to fit in. Although ever since she began trying to acquire her birthright she was more bratty than she had been, like the world owed it to her, and maybe that is what she thought.

"Thank you... Impa..." Zelda sighed as her sleep slowly began to take her. Her drive to find the Triforce taking her to many corners of the kingdom to gain her piece of the divine relic.

Imp stayed beside her having seen the rather impressive drive her young lady possessed grow from her struggles. Her frustration began when she was still young at the age of twelve when her mother passed away unexpectedly, since then part of her always expected the piece to find her but after six years the disappointment weighed on her driving her to act out. Now she could be described as the spoiled rotten, snooty princess people expected to dislike, however it wasn't that she intentionally treated people like they were beneath her, rather that her tunnel vision was so intense she didn't acknowledge anything that didn't help her. Although Impa's smile began to fade, she felt the princess was on the wrong path to finding what she sought after, her mother was an amazing woman before she passed, a wealth of advice rather than knowledge as if she knew how to approach every obstacle that tried to stand before her, yet young Zelda sought wisdom from the knowledge of books rather than learning of the world. The Sheikah knew better though, the headstrong princess wouldn't listen to her and would need to realize that on her own.

 _Elsewhere in the castle..._

"Ah the sun is shining, the birds are singing, and it's time to get some food." Ganondorf sighed as he got up out of his bed stretching looking out the window of his room seeing the northern mountains far in the distance painted with the golden light of dawn. It had been a little over a week since he had arrived at the castle and in that time he became the chosen wielder of the Master Sword by it's spirit, he was being trained to be a great warrior and at some point become appointed to guard the princess. A huge grin spread across his face imagining how proud his mother and Link must be, a little chuckle that it may even make Link jealous. As he slipped on some light clothing he began to make his way down the halls toward the dining hall while reflecting on the things that had ended up leading him to the castle.

On the day he arrived at the castle he barreled through every guard that stood between the front gates and the audience chamber arriving before the king with no less than eight guards holding on to the hulking beast of man. Rather than having Ganondorf sentenced to prison or worse, King Raubahn Thaldin Hyrule declared that Ganondorf would speak and the youth told the king and his court of the monsters in the woods and what Sorin had told him of the legends. Sorin's name held a certain weight with the king and he began to mobilize troops on the spot while the man that sat on his immediate right stared down at at Ganondorf like he was piercing through his soul.

Those dark eyes, pure white hair, and inhuman gray skin sent a shiver down his spine and when he vanished in a small flurry of what looked like a flash of gold and black diamonds Ganondorf shook his head not believing what he had just seen. When he opened them again that same man now stood before him while curiously looking over him even reaching down to place a finger under Ganondorf's chin before lifting and tilting his head appraising him. However before Ganondorf could slam him with a right hook his voice rang out filling the room while his white lips spread into a grin. The man that Ganondorf now knew as Ghirahim had told the king that he was the one that had been chosen.

Immediately afterward the man walked off and a few soldiers guided Ganondorf to his own quarters in the castle at the behest of the king. Ganondorf had been informed afterwards that the strange looking man was the spirit of The Sword of Evil's Bane and he had declared the young Gerudo as his wielder. Later that night Ghirahim presented Ganondorf to the King's court and revealed the Triforce of Power that shone on the back of his hand which Ganondorf hadn't noticed with everything that had been happening lately. The spirit declared that while in the past the wielder of Courage had always been the blade's chosen wielder, Ghirahim said that this time the blade required Power. However at first Ganondorf had no intention of staying and was eager to return to his family but Ghirahim reassured him that they would send word to his home of his imminent knighting and a generous pay was given to all the families of the royal guards. While Ganondorf was still worried about Link he figured that the rupees would better serve Kokiri or at least his family and that mattered most.

The following day Ghirahim began training Ganondorf and stood toe-to-toe with the large Gerudo who, despite his best efforts over the course of three hours, could not get past the spirit's saber and impeccable swordsmanship. While many weapon-smiths approached him after hearing of the new trainee, Ganondorf declined all of them preferring his dual iron great swords, Ghirahim found this highly amusing as the arms dealers left and Ganondorf continued to swing the blades that almost no other man could feasibly wield. More recently Ghirahim had began to start teaching him magic but in truth he had no talent for it which proved to annoy his teacher greatly but he simply gave him an annoyed grin and told him to try again.

"Ahh that was great. The grub here is amazing." Ganondorf happily sighed as he relaxed back in his seat at the long table where many of the important people dined.

"excuse me young master." An elderly voice spoke from beside him drawing his attention. A man that seemed even a fair bit older than the king bowed to him before standing back up.

"No, please, don't call me master, it's embarrassing." Ganondorf smiled reaching out to pat the man's shoulder who stared at him briefly completely shocked.

"I... Well yes, of course mast- um Ganondorf, I regret to inform you the princess won't be joining you, she got back from her latest adventure a mere hour ago." The man explained after regaining his composure.

"Ah that's fine, she has her bodyguard after all." Ganondorf shrugged off the news, he and the princess were supposed to have the time in the morning to get to know each other but she was always off doing something or another. "By the way, I don't think I've caught your name."

"Oh, it's Jeffery, sir." The man said with genuine surprise painted on his face.

"Ah alright Jeffery, go ahead and ask the kitchen to make you something and tell them it's on me alright?" Ganondorf told him with a huge grin as he got up taking his plate back.

"Wait, I can take that for you mast-" The man began but was cut off.

"Ganondorf, please." The Gerudo said firmly while heading towards the kitchen to clean it, he was raised to always do his part and he intended to. The man however watched after him completely stunned after dealing with so many nobles who had their head further up their rears than they clenched onto their coin purses.

A short while after he had finished a fair amount of the dishes for the staff he started to head back to his room for a short time before his training began. Although as he turned down one of the halls he heard grunts coming from the opposite direction he was heading and when the turned to investigate the sound he saw one of the young women who worked as a maid for the castle struggling to pull a large bag which he assumed was full of dirty linens and clothing. Without another thought he changed direction and moved to her side reaching down to grasp the end of the bag just past her own hands making her squeak from his unnoticed appearance.

"O-OH I'm so sorry M-Master, I didn't see yo-: The maid began to frantically apologize but Ganondorf simply shook his head and smiled.

"Ganondorf, just Ganondorf." The man replied before lifting the bag off the floor like it was nothing and over his shoulder. "I'm happy to help, especially if I can spend time with a stunning girl like you."

"I... Thank you... Ganondorf." The maid replied blushing deeply making her hazel eyes pop and her chestnut hair framed her face perfectly. "I was just finishing... I need to take those out to the washing basin..."

"Then lead the way beautiful." Ganondorf said with a smile while offering her his hand. As she took his hand she began to lead him along the halls allowing Ganondorf to learn of parts of the castle he hadn't seen before, specifically, they passed the staff's quarters, the entrance to the wine cellar, and the cold room where she said certain foodstuffs were kept. After a few more minutes they exited the castle onto a small section of the lawn far off from the training field. Near one of the corners sat a few of the other maids working away at the clothes they had all brought with metal boards he remembered his own mother use. While they sat around a basin filled with soapy water

"Y-You can set it here." The girl timidly told Ganondorf as she moved beside the others and grabbed one of the wash boards offering him a soft smile. The others blushed and whispered to each other while staring at Ganondorf and he could catch a few words, mainly huge, muscles, and Gerudo as he set down the laundry bag. "Thank you for helping me."

"It's nothing, I used to help my mother when I was too young to hunt and my brother was even younger." Ganondorf admitted with a slight blush, however the reply he earned from the woman was a collective.

"Awww." Ganondorf then blushed deeper before starting back towards the doorway.

"So, if any of you need help again, just find me and let me know." The blushing Gerudo said earning a few giggles from the group before he headed back to his room with the tips of his ears a red that matched his hair.

"That was so stupid, I looked like a wuss..." Ganondorf quietly cursed under his breath as he made his way through the stone halls finding his back. However a flash of red and black caught his attention down one of the hallways. Out of curiosity he turned down the hall following and as he entered the next hall he saw someone skipping down the carpeted hall while wearing a bright red cloak which seemed to bounce and flutter behind her. After a few more hops the red hood slipped off revealing nearly black hair that lightened into a rose red at the tips. The sight alone was enchanting so he ran a short way to catch up to her. "Hey, I haven't seen you around before."

However the girl seemed to ignore him but now that he was closer she was humming rather loudly which meant she probably didn't hear him. A faint sigh slipped past his lips however he saw a vase of roses in the window a few feet further giving him an idea. He ran a bit further grabbing one of the roses and lightly tapping on her shoulder which made her stop humming and turn around to look at him with bright silver eyes, beneath the cloak she wore a black and red corset over a rather white shirt over her torso as well as a black skirt, crimson leggings, and black leather boots . "Um, hi?"

"I'm sorry but I haven't seen a rose as beautiful as you around the castle, can I get your name?" Ganondorf asked with a smile while handing her the rose. However the girl's silver eyes darted from Ganondorf's to the rose and back to the Gerudo's eyes.

"Are you... Hitting on me?" The girl asked with a raised brow.

"Well, yes?" Ganondorf responded taken aback by the maiden's complete lack of interest in him compared to the maids from earlier.

"Oooooh... HIYAH!' The girl quietly began before Ganondorf's day quickly went south as the young woman slammed her boot straight into his crotch sending a pain that he couldn't imagine surging through his body and forcing the breath from his lungs as he collapsed to the floor wheezing. Meanwhile the young woman clad in red and black disappeared down the hall screaming 'STRANGER DANGER!' and rose petals hung in the air following her disappearance.

"What... The fuck?..." Ganondorf barely coughed through a cracked voice while cupping his crushed boys in pain.

"I wouldn't have done that~ She's sickeningly sweet and rather naïve~" The familiar amused tone of his master's voice sounded above him drawing his gaze up enough to see Ghirahim floating in the air as if he was lounging on a couch while his white lips were stretched into a wide grin.

"I didn't... Kn-now..." Coughed Ganondorf as he slowly tried to climb to his feet earning a chuckle from his teacher.

"Take the day off young master~ You seem to need it~" Ghirahim chided while slowly lowering himself to the floor and began to walk away.

"No. I'll be there." Ganondorf shot him a look while panting and beads of sweat dripped from his face. Ghirahim glanced back at him with a single chuckle and a tossed a bag to the Gerudo, as he caught it he felt the cold within.

"Ice will help I trust~" the spirit said before disappearing in that same flash of black and gold diamonds. With an aggravated growl Ganondorf found his way back to his room and fell onto his bed sighing in relief as the cold did it's job.

 _In the realm of dreams..._

"Find me princess..." A soft voice hung on the air like mist while the rumble of the blue flames filled the library bathing it in azure light.

"I'M FUCKING TRYING!" Zelda cried out as she sat on the floor with an entire book case worth of tomes on the ground around her all open, and all filled with blank pages. The three crescents and pools of Nayru shone with moonlight from an ornate window on the far wall making the girl's tears gleam like silver. "I've read EVERYTHING I could find for the past THREE DAMN YEARS!"

The light of the flames slowly began to quiet and die down leaving the room only lit by the pale moonlight. This dream had repeated for years leaving Zelda more and more frustrated every time the next book ended up being pointless.

"WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO?! I know enough history and magic to recreate every past hero into an almost perfect living being, BUT IT DOESN'T FUCKING MATTER!" Zelda called out into the emptiness begging for an answer as eventually a growl ripped through her throat and she punched the ground over and over harder each time until they bled and her vision was filled with tears. "Please... I miss you..."

"My daughter... It hurts so much to see you like this." A light melodic voice pierced the darkness shocking Zelda upright and she turned around while wiping her eyes on her sleeve.

"M-Mom?..." Her voice came out in a trembling choked tone as she stared at the woman with flowing gold hair that nearly reached the floor, her features perfect like a goddess herself while a pure white gown hung from her body and the two sapphire earring she wore gleamed like he azure flames. In an instant Zelda pushed off the floor as hard as possible tackling her mother and clinging to her so tightly as her bloody hands clung to the white fabric and streams of hot tears ran into the gown. "I swear it better be you or I'll burn this damn place to hell fifty times over..."

"Heh, it's me, my princess." The woman smiled and cooed gently stroking her daughter's hair happy to see her again.

"...What am I doing wrong?..." Zelda quietly asked begging for an answer as she shivered needing to know, she needed that piece of her mother with her.

"Zelda... Wisdom is not simply what you know, it's what you know of others, your instinct." Her mother spoke while gently tilting Zelda's head up, matching pools of cerulean mirroring each other. "However, know that I am so proud that you know so much more than I could have believed possible, my beloved prodigy."

"I don't understand..." The princess admitted quietly so scared of uttering those words, however she slowly closed her eyes feeling her mother kiss her forehead and she felt a rush of things filling her head making her dizzy clinging even tighter.

"You will, stop searching and it will come to you." Her mother spoke soft and clear cradling Zelda close to her while the flames began to grow again filling the area with blue light once more and behind Zelda stood a woman in blue cloth with flowing blue hair and a small smile upon her lips. However the faint sound of an organ began to permeate her dreams and her mother held Zelda tight one more time. "It seems like our time is up, I love you so much my silent princess."

"I l-love you too m-mom..." Zelda spoke quietly as her mother's nickname for her made her choke up again while the melody of the organ slowly pulled the princess from her dreams.

~X~

As Zelda woke her eyes shot open and she sat bolt upright struggling to breathe still feeling the choking pain of her tears.

"Zelda?" Impa moved like a ghost already in front of her worried and slowly saddening as she looked at the princess. "You're crying..."

Without a word Zelda quietly touched her face feeling the tears and stared at them for a moment before Impa's voice snapped her out of it.

"Princess?" Zelda's gaze shot up to Impa's and a rage burned by her wet eyes.

"I'm going to kill them. Whoever is playing my mother's organ I will put them on a spike in the middle of Hyrule Field!" Zelda shouted as she rushed out of bed and toward the door with enough rage spurring her on that the air around her cracked with magic. However the second she pulled the door open Impa slammed it shut and grabbed her arm.

"Princess get a hold of yourself!" The bodyguard said firmly as a loud crack like thunder went off and Zelda turned on Impa glaring her down with tears around her eyes.

"NO! I GOT TO SEE HER AGAIN! AND THAT FUCKING ORGAN JUST TOOK ME AWAY FROM HER!" Zelda shouted before her gaze slowly fell and she saw the jagged burn mark traveling from the back of Impa's hand and up past her elbow where Zelda's magic had shot a bolt in retaliation without her control. "I-Impa... I'm so sorry..."

"It's okay. You saw your mother?" Impa replied softly gently pulling the quaking young woman into her.

"Yeah... she told me to stop searching, it would come to me... She filled my head with things I can't make sense of..." Zelda whispered quietly into Impa's violet gi as her hands clutched over her heart scared it would break.

"Your mother was said to be the strongest bearer of Wisdom that had ever been, even in times of peace she was a true treasure... I trust you'll understand what she gave you in time princess." soothed the Sheikah woman while holding the blonde close. Zelda could only nod as she slowly got her breathing under control and finally realized how badly her hands hurt, like she had been punching the floor. Her gaze fell to them and slowly open her trembling hands but her eyes went wide as she saw that familiar sapphire earring in her hand that once hung from her mother's ear.

"Impa... Can you please have this made into a ring?" Zelda asked softly causing the woman to step back to see what she was talking about and after a moment of shock she nodded before taking it gently.

"Of course, I thought she was laid to rest with both of these." Impa spoke softly looking at the stone briefly before putting it in her gi where it was secure.

"She was." Zelda said quite firmly as her blue eyes looked into her bodyguards red orbs with a new found conviction knowing every detail of her mother's funeral. "Now then, I have somebody to see about an organ."

"Princess..." Impa began but Zelda shot her a small smile.

"I won't kill them, now." She said before opening the door and heading down the hall leaving Impa to contemplate if she meant it for a moment before disappearing.

 _In the performance hall..._

"Damn... That still hurts..." Ganondorf quietly sighed as he sat at the organ he stumbled across, his fingers moved over the keys by instinct as he played what could be considered a haunting melody but the long notes were soothing to him. Meanwhile unbeknownst to the Gerudo, Ghirahim stood on the tall ceiling above watching with a sick grin as the habits of his curse began to return.

"HEY! Who the hell do you think you are playing my organ?!" An unexpected voice boomed in the hall as the princess stormed out from one of the doorways making Ganondorf jump while Ghirahim just rolled his eyes and disappeared once more.

"S-Sorry, I happened across it and just kinda started playing." Ganondorf explained as he knelt before the princess on instinct. Zelda however glared down at him thought with far less intensity than when she entered. Now she wore a violet robe while Ganondorf was now clad in leather and black chain-mail in preparation for his coming training session.

"Very well... You meant no harm but please if you're going to play, don't play something so creepy." Zelda commented while patting the young man's shoulder to make him get up before turning back towards the door. "Besides since when do heroes-in-training know how to play music?"

"I don't actually, but I'm a man of many talents." Ganondorf countered trying to regain his footing in this encounter as he stepped away from the organ.

"I'm sure you do." Zelda quipped back at the Gerudo not taken by his charms either, though with a light wave she left heading back to her chambers.

"My luck with woman is shit today..." Ganondorf spoke under his breath before heading in the opposite direction that Zelda had gone and to the training hall where he was to meet Ghirahim for his lessons for the day.

"NO! Stop it! Let me go!" Cried a voice from down the hall and Ganondorf turned toward the call rushing along the hall before he turned and saw the source. One of the maids cowered against the wall with her clothes torn open revealing her breasts and stomach, a man clad in dark green robes held part of her clothing while his arm was being held by Jeffery.

"Master please I implore you, don't do this!" The elderly man yelled while the noble growled and flung the man off him and against the wall where a suit of armor shook a few feet away.

"Do you think I give a shit about you fucking slaves? If I want to shove my cock in her I will! If I want to fill her with my bastard children that is what is going to happen you piss poor excuse for a butler!" The noble yelled at both of them causing a black flame to burn deep in Ganondorf's heart.

"HEY! Don't you dare talk to them like that!" Ganondorf shouted down the hall at the man who glared at him in turn while the Gerudo marched toward him.

"Oh great, now the sand bastard wants to talk shit, well guess what you're worth less than my horse's shit and if you dared to challenge me to a duel you'd be castrated in moments to insure your filthy race never breeds another harem slut!" The noble spit at Ganondorf and dropped the maid who scrambled away while Jeffery moved around to her side. A black look now filled Ganondorf's eyes and he stopped beside one of the suits of armor.

"Oh what? Now the cowardly Gerudo doesn't have the gall to face true nobility?!" The man yelled turning back to gloat at the maid and Jeffery however as he turned to look back at Ganondorf his face was hit with a hunk of metal knocking the drunk bastard on his ass. After a moment of sputtering the man saw that he had been hit in the face by the gauntlet of the suit of armor Ganondorf stood beside.

"Consider that your challenge, piss ant." Ganondorf spoke coldly glaring down at the man who stumbled to his feet and struggled to pull the sword from his hip.

"Oh you've done it now! Chosen by the sword or not I'm going to take my time killing you!" The noble roared as he ran at Ganondorf with his sword above his head. Once the man was close enough, Ganondorf's had shot out grabbing the greatsword the suit of armor held and tear it free, rending the undamaged arm to pieces. In one fluid motion Ganondorf spun around and bring the massive steel blade down across the man and the first sound anyone heard was the sharp snap of metal as the Gerudo's blade cleaved through the noble's cheap decoration sword. Next came the sick sliding sound of blood, flesh, and bone ad his body separated and fell apart on the floor. With a deep breath Ganondorf dropped the blade and let ti ring against the stone floor as he walked past the corpse to kneel beside the maid recognizing her from the group earlier.

"Are you okay?... I'm sorry you had to see that, both of you." The Gerudo said sadly looking at both of them seeing their shock though Jeffery overcame it first and gently put his hand on Ganondorf's shoulder.

"You did the right thing, even at the risk of upsetting nobility." The elderly man bowed his head thankful while the maid slowly looked up at him from the pool of blood and reached up to gently wipe a line of blood form his face.

"You saved me..." Ganondorf blushed slightly hearing her say it in such reverence and quietly stood up trying to arrange her clothing a little better.

"I... Go, take care of yourselves, I did this so I'll take care of it." The Gerudo quietly told as they got to their feet looking at Ganondorf worried.

"I know you are the spirit's chosen one but I think even that privilege has it's limits." Jeffery commented quietly worried for the young man that was so different from the other nobility in the castle.

"I'll handle it Jeffery, please take care of her." Ganondorf spoke plainly using the man's name which finally brought him around. With a curt nod Jeffery lead the maid away from the grisly sight while Ganondorf slowly looked over the carnage.

"This... Will be hard to handle." The Gerudo muttered under his breath.

"Really it isn't THAT bad~" The familiar, too amused, voice echoed beside him making Ganondorf jump as he saw Ghirahim looking over the two halves of the corpse.

"L-Lord Ghirahim, I... I understand this looks bad but I swe-" Ganondorf began to speak but was silenced as Ghirahim pressed a single finger to his lips.

"I saw everything my budding prodigy~ You acted on a noble desire to save the damsel and the old man~ or was it a dark drive to murder a vile man?~ Either way I can't have my student end up in any trouble soooo it's done~" Ghirahim commented playfully toying with Ganondorf but as he finished the Gerudo just stared at him.

"What do you mean its done? We haven't..." Ganondorf's tirade ended almost as soon as it began, because when he looked back at the floor, the body and blood were gone, even the suit of armor was fixed like nothing had ever happened.

"And that my boy, is why you need to get a grip on your magic~" Ghirahim chuckled before turning and walking down the hall.

"Wait, where you going?" Ganondorf called after the spirit.

"To the training hall of course~" The gray man commented.

"But it's the other direction." The Gerudo said confused.

And he was gone.

"I'm getting real tired of that." Ganondorf muttered under his breath and looking at where the body had been moments earlier and continuing down the path a short ways until he reached the area that acted as a sort of lobby leading to a number of training halls that the royal guard used and in the center was a statue of the three goddesses; Farore, Din, and Nayru and across their hands they held a length of indigo silk that held the shattered remains of the Blade of Evil's Bane.

When Ghirahim first declared Ganondorf his chosen wielder, he told him that whenever he was freed from the sword it burst apart and now this is what remains of the powerful blade. Both royalty and the guard consider the weapon a holy relic so they placed the shards here as a symbol of hope and warning. After nodding his head to the shrine of the sword Ganondorf turned to continue on his way into the training hall he and Ghirahim used, however he paused for a moment looking back to the pieces. Part of him could swear he saw the shards glow blue however as he stepped closer he heard his teacher's voice.

"Ganonodorf~ I don't like to be kept waiting~"

An annoyed sigh escaped Ganondorf's lips as he turned away from the shrine and walked into the room he heard Ghirahim call him from. Within was the typical gear he had come to expect, racks of wood and dull metal weapons adorning them and practice dummies. However there was something that the other rooms didn't have, against one of the walls were his twin great swords which he always preferred to wield in combat. The spirit stood in the middle of the room smiled in that same way he always did an held a solid black orb in one hand while waiting for the Gerudo.

"Following your display earlier, I believe this is an excellent time to try magic once more~" Ghirahim informed as he snapped his fingers and the door closed behind them. "Magic can be accessed in a number of ways; instinct, knowledge, and even emotion~"

"So what? Do I just use it?" Ganondorf quietly asked looking at the black orb which Ghirahim set on the floor in front of him.

"Sit, remember what you were feeling earlier with that scum~" Ghirahim spoke plainly gesturing to the orb and waiting for Ganondorf to sit before it. Quietly Ganondorf did as he was told, tired of trying to get a grasp on the magic that was attempting to be taught to him. With a deep breath he focused on the fresh memory of when he had cut that noble in half, time seemed to freeze in that moment, his saber as brittle as ice when Ganondorf's great sword snapped it like a cheap toy before sinking into the scourge of a man like water and just tearing him apart. That moment echoed in his mind and he felt that same cold flame emerge within, an unbridled drive to end the man that had stood before him. "Ah perfect~"

Ganondorf opened his eyes to see what Ghirahim had meant but he saw it there in front of him. The black orb was now a sphere of black and violet flame flickering slow almost like smoke, after a long moment of staring at it Ganondorf recoiled away from it. "What the hell?! That's dark magic!"

"Yes, it is incredibly potent as well as malleable so you can shape it into other forms~" Ghirahim stated incredibly sure of himself walking around the orb.

"Why are you teaching me dark magic?! I don't want to become like those damned things!" Ganondorf yelled at Ghirahim as he got to his feet but he was quickly knocked onto his back by the gray spirit.

"Listen here~ Darkness is not evil, and evil is not darkness~ It is possible to manipulate darkness just as you can fire or lightning~ If you are so afraid of the darkness tainting you, I shall even teach you how to... 'purge' it from yourself~" Ghirahim said slow and calm while he smiled at the end of his sentence. Ganondorf quietly looked up at him before looking back to the dark flame, for some reason it called to him like he should reach out and grab it. However his gaze snapped back up to the spirit of the sword.

"I can't do that to my family, I have to return to them without bringing back the darkness..." Ganondorf responded quietly as an image of Link flashed in his head soaked with water and blood.

"Master, I'm sure if your family was truly concerned for your well being they would've arrived by now, after all it only took you half a day to barge into the castle like a raging boar~" Ghirahim stated quietly earning a glare from the Gerudo.

"We sent them notice that I'd be train-" Ganondorf started with his voice full of venom but was quickly cut off by the spirit.

"If they were TRULY concerned... I don't believe that would stop them~ If anything I would think they'd be excited to come see you~" Ghirahim said slow and smooth, his voice dripping into Ganondorf's ear like poison as the young man looked away having always thought his family would be there to support him and yet they were nowhere to be seen.

"Alright... Teach me how to use it." Ganondorf answered quietly while his teacher simply chuckled and offered his hand to bring him to his feet.

"Excellent~"

 _Meanwhile in a wine cellar in Castle Town..._

 _'thunk'_

A loud rough sound came from within one of the wine shipments that had recenty arrived for the tavern above.

 _' Thunk!'_ "grrrr..."

Another sound followed and was clearly the sound of metal against wood, though this time it was followed by a beastly growl.

 _'KATHUNK!'_

With one final blow, the lid of one of the wine shipments flew open and the blue eyed Hylian clad in green roared in rage.

"THAT SON OF A BITCH PUT ME IN A CRATE!"


	13. Reunion

**13\. Reunion**

* * *

 **Thanks to Light Logos and Mayfire ^^ I apologize for the long breaks I recently got a new job and don't have as much free time as before. However I will promise with 90% certainty that I will finish the story. Maybe even have more.**

* * *

 _Earlier that day..._

"What's with the crate?" Link asked plainly staring at the wooden box before shooting a look at Magus who wore a grin on his face.

"Well you see, the quickest easiest way to get you where you want to go, is in this." Magus explained before tapping his scepter against the wood with an audible thunk. Link looked back at the box before stepping forward and looking inside, it looked roughly four feet on all sides and inside were a couple of bottles. Wine bottles. "In you go!"

Accompanying the voice was a sharp shove against his back which made Link fall in to the create with a harsh clatter. After taking a few moments to orient himself Link stood while his anger boiled over glaring at the man. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!"

"Easy, the next shipment of Solvale's wine is going out within the hour. It just so happens it's your quickest and cleanest way inside." The man explained with a grin as he lifted a wooden panel.

"You expect me to sit in a wine crate for hours and trust I'll make it inside?" Link asked with a blank look on his face anger still seething behind the look in the blonde's eyes.

"Pretty much." Magus nodded.

"Here young man." Alexander stepped forward beside Magus while handing a small brown bag to Link who took it along with a bottle filled with water. After a quick look inside Link's gaze sharpened further.

"A sandwich..." Link spoke quietly

"Of course! Young men such as yourself need to stay fit and healthy. That sandwich is a special culinary product of techniques and recipehs that have been passed down in my family for generations!" Alexander proclaimed, though Link couldn't understand why he was posing and showing off his muscles... Were those sparkles again?

"Alexander is a good man to look out for you like that, now then off you go please sit down." Magus said with a smile before lifting the wood panel over Link's head before he held up a hand to stop him.

"No! This is degrading and there has to be a better way to get inside!" Link argued while Magus's eyes narrowed and he began trying to push the panel down.

"There isn't a better way, no sit down and eat the sandwich!" The magician argued back when Link's hand slipped and the panel came down on his head with a solid smack before Link went limp inside the crate. "Shit..."

Ever the Samaritan, Alexander quickly leaned in feeling for a pulse and luckily Link was only knocked out. "Out cold."

"Oh thank Enutrof... Oh well it was an accident... Probably... Possibly... He can't prove otherwise in court. Because I own the court." Magus mused aloud while securing the wood panel to the crate before looking back to his bodyguard. "Alexander I do own the court yes?"

"Yes sir." The muscle-man responded with a sigh.

"Good." Magus said as a smile came across his face and with another tap of his scepter on the crate it vanished to join the rest of the crates due for Castle Town.

"Magus, the 'handler' from Hyrule Castle is here." One of the girls waved from the doorway the men had entered from, this girl was in skimpy crimson armor resembling a praying mantis complete with flip up blades along the forearm for handsy costumers.

"Ah thank you Sandy, I'd like my Weiss-cream." The man commented while heading over to the door while Agathia fumed from behind and hovered off on her wings while Magus 'dealt' with the representative from the castle.

 _Back in Castle Town..._

*Approximate time since departure: seven hours, thirteen minutes, and twenty-four seconds.* Chirped the shield from Link's back as he climbed out of the crate still incredibly annoyed, He had only been awake for the last three hours of it but that didn't stop his agitation.

"-sigh- Thanks birdy." Link muttered while he stretched and Volga sat on the edge of one of the other wine crates picking the leftovers of his half of the sandwich from his fangs. If nothing else Link had to give Alexander credit, that sandwich was to die for.

*The honor is mine master* The shield responded before going quiet although Volga cast looks at it the whole time.

"Is it gonna do that all the time now?" The dragon blinked before looking up at Link who could only shrug before finishing the last of the water Alexander had given him. Thankfully the time Link spent in the crate gave his eyes time to adjust to the dark and he could see well enough in the dark well cellar. The wall he stood by was lined with crates all bearing a sun-like symbol with a hand giving a thumbs up in the center. Resisting the urge to bomb the alcohol, Link looked around more finding the room to be a stone lined basement and the rest of the room was filled wine racks filled with various bottles with different colored glass and labels. "Oh there's a note!"

Volga hoped back into the crate before emerging with a folded letter and handed it to Link as he read it:

'Dear Hero, if you find yourself in need of a quick exit, return to the crate and shut the lid, it will automatically be transported back to Solvale! ^^'

Link silently glared at the little smile scribbled in the corner and stuffed the letter in his pocket with a sigh.

"Well lets see if we're actually in Castle Town, or if I have to hunt down that mage." Link grumbled as Volga glided over to his shoulder slipping the third bottle into Link's bag while began to move up the steps that lead out. A short ways up there was light being cast on the stone wall, golden like sun light. As he reached the door he heard wood and glass moving across stone and it seemed like it was a tavern that was about to open for the evening. There was only a waitress and the bartender at this time so maybe if he moved quit and quick he could make it to the door roughly fifteen feet from the cellar door.

"Think sneaky thoughts..." Volga whispered quietly which made Link glance at him before taking a breath and focusing as a silent breeze shifted past him.

"Okay..." Link breathed as he leaned around the corner looking as the bartender leaned was crouched behind the bar getting mugs while the waitress wiped down tables. With a steady pace Link moved. He stayed low while staying against the wall, he listened closely to the sounds they each made, the clinking of the glass mugs, the faint squeak of the cloth on the tables. However the creak of the door opening made Link freeze as the waitress looked over, a breeze had pushed the door open a few inches however the woman was looking practically straight at Link as he held his breath but the woman simply shrugged and went back to cleaning. Not one to chance fate, Link quickly moved and slipped out through the door pushing it a little further like the wind had. Once in the street he leaned back against the wall confused as he sighed.

"What was that?" Volga asked as he looked at Link. "You aren't that attractive for a human."

"What do you mean?" Link breathed staying quiet.

"Why did she look right through us?" The dragon quipped confused.

"How should I know? It's not like teleported through the wall." Link snapped at the dragon feeling confused and aggravated as the crimson dragon shrugged.

"Eh, we can figure it out later." Volga dismissed it while his mind mulled it over, although his eyes moved around looking at all of the stone buildings in the narrow back alley. "Not as grand as I expected."

Link just rolled his eyes as he moved down the alley towards the sounds of noise and in a short amount of time he emerged on a busy street that was full of people moving to and fro. Almost instantly Link nearly lost his balance and steadied Volga while the rush of people caught him off balance. Once he had his footing again he got to a spot against one of the buildings where he could look around. The streets were full of people of all shapes sizes and colors, mostly Hylians but he saw a decent amount of Gerudo, Goron, and Zora. Though it was his first time seeing Zora and the first time seeing a Gerudo besides his brother, and he couldn't stop staring at them.

"Sav'saaba, young Voe." A Gerudo said as she waved from the street and winked at him. The woman's hair a deep crimson and her skin was like red clay while her body was clad in thin white garb accented by silver metal accentuating a figure that would make a sculptor faint.

"Whoa... Wait what did she say?" Link asked quietly looking after the woman while she disappeared into the crowd.

"Good... day? No, Evening. Good evening young man is what she said. Gerudo often use parts of their own language despite knowing Hylian." Volga responded interested as well never having heard a Gerudo speak but having read about the history of Gerudo's integration with Hyrule.

"Huh..." Was all Link could say still dumbstruck by the woman before started to follow the crowd looking around at the buildings. The over all lay out seemed similar to Solvale but Link began to wonder if that was just a thing large places had in common. Numerous stores and establishments stood out as he made his way around finding some sort of climbing game, an archery gallery; he'd rake in the rupees later, and as he made it to the main square of Castle Town he was astounded by the massive fountain in the middle that stood before Hyrule Castle raising high into the sky like a beacon over looking the town. Multiple golden accents decorated the square and the castle alike along with the large thick wooden double doors that laid in front of the castle that he had no doubt spanned around the castle grounds.

"I'm nearly there Ganondorf." Link quietly promised while looking up at the massive castle that loomed over the town. Even through the crowd of people Link could see the guards lined along the path up to the sealed doors and he doubted he could get in through the front door if getting into the town alone was any indication. A faint grumble ran through his throat as he tore his gaze away from the castle looking around the fountain square.

"What's the plan?" Volga asked curiously staying particularly close to Link given the sheer amount of people in the area.

"We can't just go in, I guess I'll need to find another way in." The blonde commented while looking around seeing a number of shops lining the edge of the square. Most of them looked extremely extravagant and overpriced if Link could tell anything by the noble looking people moving in and out of the large buildings. However around the fountain itself there were street venders set up around it, it seemed the city really did have a place for everyone. His feet began to move looking at the shops while the current of the crowd guided him, far down the roads to the East, West, and South were massive doors that were sealed with braces as large as trees keeping them firmly shut. Many of the shops around the fountain had simple goods like spices, arrows, charms and trinkets, while the larger stores around the edge were high-end weapon, armor, and jewelry boutiques. Although without even noticing it his feet had brought him to stand in front of a large rather wealthy looking place. The front steps even had a red carpet leading down to the stone street as ornate looking pottery lined the rail and the store front.

However he barely managed to take a step on the carpet.

"Stop right there young man." A sharp rather refined voice cut through the air drawing Link's confused gaze up to the door where a man dressed in fine black and white clothes looked down at him. "Apologies but you may not enter this establishment."

"What? Why not? I don't look that bad." Link quietly commented looking over his clothing suddenly feeling self-conscious. The man shook his head before motioning to his right where a piece of faded parchment was tagged against the arch of the entrance. It was a wanted poster with a nearly perfect likeness of Link, complete with his hunting cap, all in green, although the poster was slightly faded like it had been up for decades.

"I'm sorry sir but this establishment has a long standing policy of not allowing people who look like this scoundrel within these walls. Please move along." The man spoke professionally but still, Link had never even been in this city before and now he was being discriminated against.

"NO! I haven't done anything to deserve to be treated lik-" Link snapped while swinging his arm as part of his declaration, however in that motion his arm knocked a particularly expensive looking pot from the rail that fell to the ground and shattered sending shards of clay, gold, and emeralds along the ground. Silently Link looked at the remains of the pot, the sound echoing in his mind for a moment before he looked up at the man who met his gaze at the same time. "I... I'll be going..."

"Quite young man." The door-keep performed a short bow unphased by the pot falling as Link turned away and began to walk back into the crowd.

"What was that?" Volga quietly hissed confused.

"I don't know, I didn't mean to break it." Link quietly spoke glancing back at the remains while the man bent down cleaning up the shards.

"Not that, why did you back down, you're right they can't do that to you without proof of conviction." The dragon said matter-of-factly.

"Yeah... You're right they can't just tell me I can't go in like that." Link said openly, the dragon psyching him up as he turned around and began to march back to the store as the door-keep held a small pan and brush.

"Sir plea-" The man began before Link cut him off.

"No. That was an accident and that can't be held against me, I'm going into that shop right no-" The blonde fumed as he stomped back over, however on one particular footfall his boot landed on a particularly round emerald which shot out from under him making Link fall face first in front of the man. "...Ouch..."

"Will that be all sir?" The man politely asked as Link rose on his hands and knees reaching up to rub his face before noticing his bomb bag to his right. Deducing that it must have just fallen out when he fell he reached over picking it up before standing up and politely nodding to the man before turning away once again.

"Dude that was so embarrassing..." Volga sighed shaking his head.

"Shut up, that was a sick accident... The bag feels lighter..." Link shot at the dragon before noticing the weight of the bomb bag. Curiously he opened it and started to take count. "1, 2, 3... 17, 18. I'm missing two."

Not a moment later did a loud concussive blast go off sending red and blew flames past Link and he quickly turned around seeing the building filled with blue flame as patrons and smoke escaped the building and the rapid sounds of pots shattering could be heard within. Link silently stared with wide eyes as a short rather plump man with a toupee on fire came running out in tears as he collapsed to the ground. "NO! MY POTTERY!"

"That's strange..." Volga quietly commented while tilting his head looking at the building and the flames.

"What that he cared so much about his store?" Link silently asked while beginning to inch away from the store front.

"No... That blast was only big enough for one bomb. If two are missing then the other must be arou-" Volga began to explain the strength of the explosion before another went off showering the square and more embers. Link froze before looking at the second store that had fallen to the bomb trip, it was similar in construction to the first but many of its accents were green cloth banners while a giant stone... cabbage? Sat atop the building. Like the pottery store another man came running out though he was very tanned, tall, and skinny.

"NO! MY CABBAGES!" The man screamed falling tot he ground while tears ran down his face and strangled whimpers filled the air along with the sounds of flames crackling from both buildings.

"I... Think we should disappear..." Link quietly spoke stepping away from the flames while Volga swiftly nodded. However before he could take more than a few steps back the plump man's enraged voice pierced the air.

"It's you! I knew it! The Green Demon has returned and destroyed all of my pottery!" The man yelled and held an accusing finger at Link as he stammered.

"Now now, hold on everybody. These days you can't just throwing words like demon around." A woman's voice pierced the roar of flames and the distinct sound of a boot heel hitting stone filled the air. From the direction of the castle came forth a woman with striking lavender eyes, flowing blonde hair like golden fire, and curves that would make a river jealous. Link couldn't help but stare, she looked younger than Cindy but with a more fit body. Her arms were clad in gold and black gauntlets while she wore an open leather jacket over a yellow top that fit tightly over her large breasts and revealed her abs beneath the hem of her shirt. Her legs were clad in similar greaves over her boots and what looked like a see-through violet skirt held up with a belt over black short shorts.

"No Captain Yang! It's truly him! The Green Demon that has plagued my clan of pottery masters for generations!" The man scrambled over to the woman with a scrap of paper in his hand, by this time most of the square had evacuated due to the explosions. She was a captain for the royal army? He may be in it bad this time. It was then that Link realized the scrap the man handed her was the decades old wanted poster, surely she wouldn't believe such an outdated form of identification... Right?

"Well I guess that's that, It's my job to eliminate The Green Demon and protect this man's lineage." Yang declared with a wicked grin while slamming her fists together producing a wave of flame around her that clung to her gauntlets.

"Shit..."

"Shit..." Link and Volga yelped at the same time, before he could say anything the woman leaped forward at him with her arm pulled back ready to punch him. Without a word or command, the Clockwork Shield rapidly rolled along his arm to clamp on to his forearm just in time to block the blow that sent Link flying back over the fountain dousing him and Volga in water. The shield had used it's talon-like additions to move in place and protect it's wielder.

"Fuck... I guess I didn't give this thing enough credit." Link sighed as he slowly got up feeling the pain radiating from his back. This Yang wasn't kidding around and the force behind her blows were unreal, given that he had just got to the Town it may be better to run rather than try to fight if he could even defeat her anyway. With a quick scan of his surroundings he saw a gold streak as Yang leaped over the fountain using the flames covering her armor. "This is not gonna be easy..."

"I've got my eyes on you Green Demon!" The woman called out with a grin across her face, she would be so damn hot right now if she wasn't covered in fire... Link blinked getting out of his thoughts and quickly rolling to the side barely avoiding the impact but the shield protecting him from the flames that burst out from the strike. "Come on! Don't tell me the Green demon is just gonna run!"

The woman's voice edged at Link as he broke into a sprint moving down one of the walls before ducking into an alleyway trying to get away from the little yellow dragon. As Link came to a fork in the road the alley quickly glowed yellow and Link jumped down the left road just in time as a fireball exploded against the wall where he had been standing a moment earlier.

"I know she's totally trying to kill you... But I like her." Volga commented while staying close to Link's neck as he pushed off continuing down the street.

"This so not the time Volga!" Link snapped at the dragon while dodging down another street as he heard the crackle of flames follow him. Sparring a glance back Link saw that Yang was leaping from wall to wall keeping the higher ground as she chased him down and leaving molten footholds where her feet connected with the stone. A few more turns and Link found himself in a dead-end street with old boarded up buildings and a stone wall at the opposite end.

"You have got to be kidding me!" Link growled as he reached back pulling out his sword and raising it above his head to strike through the boards barring his way into one of the buildings. Although as soon as his sword was raised a blast of fire hit the black blade knocking him off balance and nearly losing the sword as well as he stumbled a few steps making his shoulder hit the stone wall as Yang chuckled and cracked her knuckles slowly stepping toward him with that smirk on her lips.

"Now now Green Demon, I appreciate the work out but this encounter was sorely... Lacking. Are you gonna put up a fight or is this gonna be boring for me too?" The woman asked while shifting her stance and positioning her right arm back as flames began to build up along it. Link stared down the woman defiantly and clung to his sword and shield getting ready to meet her attack as Link heard a faint growl from beside him.

"Close your eyes Link." Volga growled and moved around his neck using his tail to hang from the hylian's neck and face the golden woman. However the instant Volga spoke the woman's look of confidence was washed over with confusion as her lavender eyes darted to the crimson dragon and back up to Link.

"A dragon? Wait your name is Li-" Yang began but Volga cut her off with a hissing sound that was followed by loud pop, Volga had released a small cloud of gas before snapping his jaws shut and igniting it producing a bright flash that left the woman disoriented however while Link listened and blocked his eyes the burst knocked him back against the stone wall and the next thing he knew he was falling.

"Din dammit..." Yang growled pulling off one of her gauntlets so she could rub her eyes as her vision slowly came back and dots flew in her vision. The blonde quietly glared at the wall in front of her and looked around the alleyway. "It seemed 'The Green Demon' managed to escape, well that makes the legends much more interesting hehe, it makes HIM more interesting. Could be fun if I see him again~"

Yang turned on her heel and began to head back to the castle though she saw smoke raising in the distance against the dusky sky and her joy quickly deflated. "Fuck... I hate doing paperwork..."

…

"VOLGAAAAAA?! WHAT'D YOU DO?!" Link yelled as they fell into darkness before a sudden stop and his mouth was filled with straw, instantly recognizing the taste from the years of growing up in his village.

"I have no idea... But we're safe." Volga commented looking around as the sound of a click drew both of their gazes up to a man who stood in a doorway with a crossbow aimed at Link.

"Ish? Heh..." Volga said quietly while lowering his head from Link's glare.

"I'm sorry I don't know where I am, I was running from this woman covered in fire and we got backed into an alley. I'm so sorry for intruding." Link tried to explain as he climbed off the pile of hay that broke his fall. Although in retrospect he supposed it sounded implausible.

"Move slowly and follow me." The man said while backing through the doorway, Link followed him quietly doing as he was told while putting away the shield and sword. As he stepped in he saw a massive room that had to span at least a block of the city above ground, there were tables and containers all over covered in maps, parchments, tomes, so much that Link wasn't sure what he stumbled upon. Although when Link stepped into the light cast my the orbs of light that hung around the room the man gasped and lowered the crossbow instantly. "Oh Hylia... Link?"

"Um... Yes? That is my name." The blonde quietly responded looking at Volga briefly who shrugged not sure what was going on.

"I can't believe this, I knew it was almost time but I didn't think I'd meet you!" The man exclaimed his voice full of so much glee it oddly put Link at ease. Now that they were in a well lit area Link saw that the man had pink to blonde hair, much of it swept back while his bangs were styled to the sides. A pair of glasses sat on his face rather simple in design while light blue eyes looked through them. He was about a foot taller than Link himself and wore a white coat that was covered in a variety of stains of multiple colors while also wearing simple clothes beneath.

"I'm sorry but have we met?" Link asked softly confused by how familiar the man seemed to think Link was.

"Oh. No, not at all. I've read about you though." The man responded before going over to one of his tables that was covered with books searching through the pile before becoming confused and going over to a bookcase beside the table and quickly pulling out a leather bound tome and returning to Link. "I don't know if you're aware yet, but you are the reincarnation of a hero that has passed down through the ages."

"Oh... You mean the things Renado told me..." Link quietly said while Volga blinked and looked at him tilting his head.

"Oh you spoke to Old Man Ren already! That saves a lot of time then." The man said happily before returning to what seemed like the center of his set up and putting down the book. Although Volga could see that the information made Link less happy than the man before them. As Link followed the man his gaze moved the many tables the man had filled with multiple tomes and experiments.

"So how do you prefer to fight? I'm very interested in recording your feats and make the next chapter of heroes." The man asked before turning back to Link with a book in hand and a quill ready to write.

"Um... Bow, I use my head." Link responded a little off balance with all of this evidence around him that told the stories of the Heroes past. "My brother uses swords, I use what is around."

"Hm very curious... Heroes of the past often specialized in the time honored sword and shield." The man jotted down While Volga grumbled.

"Hey, Link is his own person he doesn't have to follow a damn mold!" The dragon growled with narrowed eyes while Link smiled and scratched his head.

"Oh no, I didn't mean to imply insult I just meant it was the norm... You're a dragon..." The man just now seeing Volga blinked for a moment and wrote down that information in the book as well. After another moment he set the book aside while looking over Link. "You... have magic yes? Mana seems to be leaking from you, you don't know how to properly use it yet."

"Yeah... How can you tell?" Link looked at him curiously and the man reached down to take his hand and turned it upright before tracing along Link's life line which had a faint blue color under it like a vein.

"Right here, this is a sign of lack of control. You said you are an archer yes? Have you tried using magic with your bow?" The man took a step back looking up to Link's eyes with honest curiosity.

"I've barely tried to use it to be honest. I've used Wind and Fire magic before but both were on instinct." Link admitted while Volga quietly laid back down feeling off with the man analyzing his brother like a bug under a scope.

"Ah, I take it you haven't needed to use it much, well then take out your bow and give it a shot." The man smiled and gestured toward a wall at least fifty feet away.

"Um... Are you sure about that?" Link asked while readying his bow and reaching for an arrow which he brought up and drew back but waited to aim.

"Of course Link." The man reassured the blonde with a smile while watching Link's hands and the bow.

"Okay..." Link breathed while taking a breath and aiming, he thought back to when he had fought the Lizalfos, the rage that had boiled within him when he thought they would kill Volga. A red glow formed in his eyes as he focused that heat through his hands and into the arrow and bow causing it to emit a soft red glow.

While exhaling, Link let the arrow fly.

"Link wait!" The man started but it was too late, the second the arrow flew the bow surged with fire and explode in his hand showering bits of wood around the immediate area while the flaming arrow flew across the huge room before impacting against the wall making a shudder rumble as flames expanded out in a rush that probably would've been deadly in the field. Link however was knocked back and fell as burns covered his arm-guard. "My word, are you okay?"

"My bow!" Link yelled looking at the blackened splinters still in his hand as Volga looked between the splinters and his brother now worried. That bow had been Sorin's that he had gave to Link after completing his Archery lessons. In a flash of Anger Link's gaze shot at the man and his arm surged out to grab his collar but the man was quick to step out of reach as a flaming claw mimicked Link's action. "What was that..."

"Well... On the plus side you have great magical aptitude and control, but poor catalysts. I am sincerely sorry about your bow though, I didn't expect your output to be so great for not having trained..." The man looked down genuinely upset as Link glared for a few more minutes before looking away, he didn't mean to destroy the weapon and was only trying to help Link so he took a deep breath before climbing to his feet.

"Do...Do you know where I can get another bow?" Link's voice came out strained while letting go of the blackened wood.

"Oh even better, I can craft you one that is more receptive to your magical ability." The man proclaimed confidently while heading over to a section of his lab with a number of chests and he took a pieces of wood out before grabbing a book from his pile and returned to his workbench.

"By the way... What's your name?" Link asked realizing he hadn't caught it yet.

"OH, apologies Master Link. My name is Bolin, my great, great ad nauseum, Grandparents Beth and Collin knew the Hero of Twilight." Bolin proclaimed proudly while Link raised a brow, he still couldn't get used to the idea that he was a reincarnated hero, though the more he thought about he simply shook his head. "I'm also Hyrule's lead magical and historical researcher."

"Well thanks... Maybe I can start using magic, that would be cool." Link responded while lifting Volga off his shoulder. "So buddy, Mind waiting for me here? I wanna go look around."

"You're gonna go find your brother..." Volga claimed while looking into Link's eyes knowing better.

"...Yeah, I'd rather not risk you getting in trouble if I get caught." Link smiled while setting Volga on the table covered with tomes. "Can't put you in danger on purpose, ya'know?"

"Fine... Only because I know if mom found out she'd eat you." Volga lowered his wings in what Link thought was the dragon's version of a pout.

"Heh, behave." Link smiled while patting the dragon's head while looking over at Bolin who had already gotten to work on the wood to form the bow. Link quietly looked around the huge room now realizing that he had no idea how to leave though the orbs of light had 4 lines made up of blue red green and gold light leading in different directions.

"Oh right, If you follow the gold path it'll lead you to the Hylia District, it's where the Fountain is." Bolin commented while looking back to Link with a smile. Link nodded to the man before looking up and finding the path of gold and beginning to move in that direction.

~Princess... Please... You must help Link!~

The voice shot through Link like an arrow as his vision blurred and he fell to the floor holding his head the voice so clear this time, the emotion behind it making his eyes well up feeling the desperation behind the plea.

"Link!?" Volga was the first at Link's side as he slowly sat up Bolin by his side as well looking over him worried.

"What happened?" The scholar asked while checking Link's forehead.

"I... Heard a voice... Again." Link quietly explained while slowly wiping his eyes, Volga assumed it was from pain while Link knew it was from being overwhelmed by emotion.

"A voice?" Bolin questioned confused.

"Yeah... Last time it happened was when I found this shard..." Link quietly reached into his bag searching for it before his hand bumped against the smooth surface. However a look crossed his face as he felt it multiple times. Slowly he pulled out three similar shards of similarly smooth silvery material, if Link looked at them hard enough he could swear there were runes on them. "Here, I found one in a Queen Dodongo at Highpeak, another in the Kakariko Gorge where a giant arachnid was sealed before, I can't remember where I got the last one though."

"My word... I can't believe you have these..." Bolin stared at the fragments touching them slowly before picking them up and heading over to a table covered in a large cloth. A rope hung down beside a nearby support which was connected to the corners which he quickly pulled up revealing hundreds, no thousands of small similar shards arranged in a giant circular shape with six large voids in the shape.

"What is this?" Link quietly asked while looking over the huge design, now that he could see most of it put together he saw the runes etched along the glass, or at least he thought it was glass.

"This Link, is the Mirror of Twilight, an artifact that was shattered by the Twilight Princess, Midna." Bolin explained while going around the table and looking at the voids along with the shards.

"Midna..." Link said softly and a flash of a smile from over a week prior hit him.

"Yes, my ancestors and I have been searching for the pieces and have arranged this much of it. However it is said that only a wielder of the Triforce can mend the relic once all the pieces are together." The scholar quickly placed the three pieces Link had brought and now it was at least three quarters finished.

"So I can find the last pieces in monsters?" Link asked quietly looking up at the Scholar feeling something inside him being pulled to the mirror.

"I cannot confirm that for sure... Though it seems that is the case based on the size of the pieces you brought." Bolin admitted, while he wasn't sure, it was a safe guess. Link nodded and sighed rubbing his head again after the emotional bullet that shot through him.

"We'll look into it after I get back. Hopefully my brother can help us too." Link claimed with a light smile before moving away from the table and towards the way out while Volga looked on worried.

"Alright bookworm, I want everything you've found on Midna, I'm not letting some hussy hurt my brother again." The dragon looked at Bolin still not taken a back by him while the scholar looked at him confused.

"Actually all accounts infer that that the Hero of Twilight and Midna may have been in a romantic relationship." Bolin explained before Volga growled low.

"Did I stutter?" The look in the dragon's eyes, though small, sent the scholar skittering.

…

Link slowly emerged from the hidden doorway shutting it behind him before stepping out on the street and looking back at the wall he had emerged from. If he didn't know better he could have sworn that it was just a wall. As he shook his head he slowly moved through the streets.

"Sav'orr, handsome voe." A familiar husky voice caressed Link's ear making him shiver as he slowly turned to see the Gerudo woman from earlier with a seductive smile on her ruby red lips.

"I... Hi." Link replied dumbly still sparsely equipped for dealing with the fairer sex. The woman giggled lightly and bent down slightly to look him in the eyes while pushing her generous cleavage together threatening to make them spill out.

"Two hundred rupees and I'll send you to Sa'oten~" The woman proposed with her seductive voice, however as she said two hundred Link's eyes snapped to and he raised an eyebrow a bit insulted.

"While you are incredibly beautiful, I don't pay for it. Thank you though." Link declared full of pride before tipping his hat to the woman that stared at him awestruck yet amused. However as Link was walking away he got an idea and silently walked back over to the woman. "Is there any chance you know a way to get into the castle? I'm looking for someone."

"Tch, despicable voe, you turn me down like a common whore then ask for my help?" The Gerudo stood up and crossed her arms looking away insulted.

"I... I'm sorry." Link quietly looked down not knowing what else to say but then he saw her hand in front of him and looked up to see her lips tilted up in a grin.

"Forty rupees." the woman claimed having been teasing him since she thought he was cute.

"Oh... Okay." Link agreed while reaching into his bag handing her two red rupees. After a short moment she tucked them away and grabbed his hand leading him through the alleys until they were in a district lit by red lanterns. Link's eyes wandered seeing many other woman, of all races at different buildings in thin outfits and wearing colorful face paint like the Gerudo woman who was leading him through the streets. A few men whistled as they saw Link and the woman while other groups of women giggled and cooed waving at them.

"Don't mind them, it's unimportant." The woman spoke back to Link with a smile on her face before they ducked into a building that had a red gossamer sheet over the door. Once inside, sweet scents hit Link like rain did in the morning, his head swam for a moment while his hand closed a little tighter around the Gerudo's. As his mind swam the woman kissed his forehead and the events following were a blur of green, red and gold.

When Link's mind did finally began to clear he groaned and held swayed leaning into the woman who giggled. "Hey handsome, finally coming out of it?"

"What happened?" Link questioned as he slowly sat up and became uniquely aware he wasn't wearing his normal clothes. Gold bands studded with stones ringed his wrists and upper arms with veils of see-through green gossamer spanning the rings, his abs were completely exposed and his torso was adorned with a thin blue and green top that connected to a golden clasp at his neck, a veil of the same material covered below his eyes and connected back to a cap similar to his own. His lower body was garbed in baggy dark green pants with a gold and green sash around his waist. "...What the fuck am I wearing?"

"Hehe, don't like dressing up as a vai? Shame, you could make good coin." The woman commented with a wink as Link stood up glaring at the woman.

"Give me back my rupees." Link groaned as he found his balance.

"You're wearing them darling." Those words made Link groan as he looked around. They were in a room with a few other Gerudo cleaning up and painting their faces, one or two smiling at him and waving. "Don't worry, it was just the easiest way of getting you into the castle, your stuff is all in your bag."

"...Thanks, was I drugged?" Link asked quietly as he checked his bag after the woman handed it back.

"Unintentionally..." The Gerudo shrugged while lounging on the huge pillows in the room while playfully sticking her tongue out at him revealing a ruby stud gleaming on her tongue. "The establishment I work with uses incenses that boost libido, and I guess you're a light weight."

"Oh... Well, thanks... I never got your name." Link admitted with a blush under the veil.

"Hehe, Ra'za, be safe handsome vai." The woman winked and blew him a kiss as Link glared faintly before slipping out and finding a place to change back into his normal clothes. After a short time he was back in his gear and decided to stow the Gerudo clothes rather than leave them on the floor where a guard could find them.

"Alright... Drugs are bad..." Link silently spoke under his breath while pressing against the stone wall of the castle and began to move down the hall looking around curiously finding the chambers of this part of the castle were mainly guest rooms and bathing rooms. Most of the castle just seemed like a huge maze and he quickly started to get frustrated.

"I swear I've passed that suit of armor four times now..." Link glared at said suit of armor before turning down another hall that seemed to lead up in a curve. As he reached the top he started to see a few doors lining this hall. As he opened one of the doors he found himself looking at a huge bed lined with blue and white sheets. Something inside him clicked as he saw the room and he slowly stepped inside shutting the door behind him.

"This has to be Zelda's room..." Link whispered looking around at all the books littered across the room along with the scattered purple clothing scattered around. It seems the princess wasn't as prim and proper as she wanted to appear. However, it gave Link an idea that seemed fun, it took a few moments but as he slowly shut the door while making sure a piece of fabric caught the corner of the door.

"Next time she goes in I get payback~" Link happily thought while heading down the hall feeling good about himself. However as he turned a corner he saw two guards at the top of a set of stairs and heading towards him.

'Crap...' Link quickly moved back behind cover while hoping they didn't see him and a silent breeze blew around him. The sound of their greaves came closer and Link moved in behind the pillar that made up the corner and held his breath hoping while the guards rounded the corner. Link stared scared out of his mind as the armored men talked idly about the market and the fire that broke out, apparently the merchants were claiming that 'The Green Demon' was responsible which made them both start chuckling.

Link glared faintly as they walked on and he quickly ducked around the corner heading down the stairs and across another hall finding himself in a large ballroom with an organ at the head of it. However another set of guards were approaching from the opposite side of the room and Link was stuck in the open this time. He made a break for it sprinting hard and dropping into a slide to reach the next hall while ducking behind another pillar and peeking out from behind it looking as the guards continued on as if they hadn't seen or heard a thing.

"Are these guys half blind or something?" Link questioned under his breath before shaking his head and began to head down the hall when he heard a familiar growl. To his left was a large window where he saw Ganondorf down below in the training yard cleaving a wooden log in half with those hulking black swords Link remembered. A wide smile spread over his face as he finally saw his brother safe and healthy. Without thinking Link turned to run down the hall and find a path down to his brother, however as he turned he saw a woman walking in his direction which made him freeze.

The woman had a curry yet svelte figure, built for agility like he was. Black boots covered up to her knee while black leggings spanned up to her waist. Her midriff was bare until a black cloth top that spanned up over the swell of her chest and forming a crossing design across the collar and over that she wore a white jacket. Her skin was pale like the moon while her gold eyes scanned the book she was holding and jet-black hair fell down to her hips in smooth waves while two black triangles poked up through her hair, cat ears?

"Don't stare." The woman snapped while her gold eyes looked straight into his blue gaze.

"Heh, busted..." Link smiled sheepishly while the woman looked him up and down with a scrutinizing gaze.

"Shadow magic, mid-level invisibility, you're skill is good enough I won't alert the castle, get going." The woman quietly assessed before continuing to walk while Link stared after her but she shot a glare just before turning the corner. "I said, go."

"Yes ma'am." Link heeded her command and bolted down the hallway where he found another staircase and a branching hall. Link took the stairs down as the woman's words played in his head, Shadow magic too? Link rounded a corner and ran out onto the grassy field while breathing deep and he willed the magic away from his body.

"Gan!" Link called out as he broke into a sprint heading straight for his brother, his call making Ganondorf turn out of shock dropping his swords. In that moment Link ducked and tackled his huge brother taking him to the ground laughing. "Ha! All that training and you're still flat-footed?"

"...Link? You ass, heh." Ganondorf sighed and hugged his brother smiling lightly before pushing Link off him so he landed in the grass.

"Heh, so I found ya." Link smirked as he sat up and looked at Ganondorf proud of everything he had gone through. "How are you? It feels like forever since that day in the river."

"Yeah it does... I've been good, the Master Sword chose me as it's wielder, but you already know that." Ganondorf commented with a grin while Link stared at him while raising an eyebrow.

"Liar." Link said plainly with a deadpan look dismissing his claim. "How would I know that anyway?"

"What do you mean? I've been sending letters home every few days and I already sent most of the rupees they gave me as bonus for staying here in the castle." Ganondorf explained confused.

"I left the day after you did, I've been trying to find you. Castle Town has been placed under lock down so it took a while to get in here." Link told the Gerudo seeing the confusion painted across his face.

"That's a lie~" A fanciful voice pierced the air as Ghirahim stepped forth seeming to appear out of nowhere.

"Lord Ghirahim! My apologies, I was practicing until my brother just showed up." Ganondorf apologized while scrambling to his feet.

"Lord? Really Ganondorf?" Link looked up at his brother with a look that couldn't shoe more disbelief if he tried. With a sigh he moved and got to his feet as well while looking over this 'Master'. The pale skin nearly made him look like a ghost and the creepy look on his face made a chill go down Link's spine having a faint sense that this had happened before. However his brother shot Link a look that he knew well from their time as kids, the don't make me look bad' look.

"I gathered that much, Master~" Ghirahim confirmed while looking over Link and the blonde swore he saw a flicker of something in the white-haired man's eye, something like hatred before he simply smiled and turned away from Link to regard Ganondorf exclusively. "He is of course lying about the Town being under quarantine though. Why would we possibly seal this bastion of light when the darkness is coming? People need a place to feel safe after all."

"That's a load of shit! It took me a week just to get into this town!" Link snapped at Ghirahim but Ganondorf raised his arm against Link's chest.

"He's right Link it doesn't make sense, why would you lie about that?" Ganondorf asked as he looked down at Link who looked back stunned.

"Wh-what?" Link stammered not even sure he heard his brother right.

"Perhaps he sought to mend the divide he had created by not coming to see you earlier and now that you're making something of yourself he wants to live in your shadow?~" Ghirahim offered as he moved around Ganondorf's side to lean on his shoulder with a sick little smirk playing across his face.

"You bastard! Don't you dare talk about use like that!" Link growled while reaching back for his sword and shield pulling them free as he shifted into a stance ready to attack the pale freak, however before he could Ganondorf stood to face Link his body blocking Ghirahim.

"...Where is the shield?" Ganondorf asked, his voice low while his amber eyes scanned the Clockwork Shield that hung on Link's arm.

"I lost it in a fight... It's a long story..." Link quietly admitted while looking down at the shield he now used in place of the one his brother gifted him.

"I think he sold it it for the money to get that shiny looking one~" Ghirahim chided with a smirk looking at Link over Ganondorf's shoulder. That was the last straw and Link lunged forward aiming between Ganondorf's side and arm to his Ghirahim on the other side but a sharp clang could be heard as Link looked past his brother confused and he saw that a black hand had caught the tip of the iron blade and even managed to blunt the tip.

"What the?..." Link looked at the blade before looking up at his brother and the man that stood behind him while he slowly walked around revealing that his arm was now black and metallic before the blackness slowly disappeared in a haze of diamond-like fractals.

"Lord Ghirahim is the spirit of the Master Sword, and I told you, he chose me as the next hero of the Sword of Evil's Bane!" Ganondorf roared before stepping forward and launching a fist into Link's stomach lifting him off the ground and sending him back a few feet skidding across the ground.

"Gan, don't... do this." Link quietly pleaded looking up at the crimson haired warrior as he stood with a look of pain, anger, and determination etched across his face.

"He taught me how to fight with technique! He taught me how to wield magic!" Ganondorf spoke out loudly while raising his hand and a black and purple flame roared to life. Link stared at it and quietly rose to his feet as his abdomen screamed at him for moving, and as he stood facing his brother he held out his shield arm palm up and summon a plume of red fire to mirror his brother.

"Whatever that creep says, I found this power while searching for you, brother." Link declared as the red flame flickered away and his arm lowered to hold his stomach, using the sword as a support while trying not to give it away.

"Link..." The Gerudo spoke soft seeing his brother's own growth but soon his plume of black flame grew larger and shaped itself, though Ganondorf wasn't doing this. Ghirahim channeled and shaped Ganondorf's dark power with his won while touching his shoulder until it final took form. Link knew the blade but it was a perversion of the Master Sword shown in books and portraits, the hilt being distorted into a wicked shape with a different design to the wings that make up the hand guard, the Triforce engraving was inverted upon the dark gray blade, that was significantly larger with a waving flame-like edge. "What?... This isn't the Master Sword."

"Correct~ This is not the Master sword you are used to, this is the Master Sword of Power, the form it took in previous eras were the result of the Hero wielding the Triforce of Courage~" Ghirahim whispered in Ganondorf's ear while he moved the blade looking over it while Link stared at the demonic looking blade accented with black and red.

"Don't listen to him, that can't be the Master Sword!" Link yelled to his brother while Ghirahim's dark influence was locking in and Ganondorf's eyes met Link's edged with shadow before raising the sword angling it at Link.

"I think it's time to leave, Link." The Gerudo claimed while Link's eyes narrowed and he pulled the iron blade from the ground while a bolt of pain shot through his side.

"No! I didn't come all this way... Just so you could be a pig-headed jerk!" The Hylian declared while shifting his stance to face his brother. At that moment Ganondorf pushed off the ground closing in on Link quicker than he remembered leading to the blonde barely raising his shield in time to block the titanic force of the blow that Ganondorf brought down with the 'Master Sword'. The force sent him skidding back again and as Link looked up he saw Ganondorf moving in again. This time Link crouched and dived rolling under Ganondorf's lunge to come up beside him where Link whipped around holding out the shield and slamming it into Ganondorf's solar plexus making the large man stumble back gasping for breath while Link moved away keeping his guard up and shifting the black sword in his grasp. He had no intention of going for any kind of lethal blow but that didn't mean he was gonna be a punching bag either. "Well? You gonna stand down?"

"Never!" Ganondorf roared while bringing down the blade straight into the ground while it erupted with black flames. As soon as the blade made contact a surge of cutting flame shot out towards Link and he had no hope of dodging on his own, but he wasn't the same hunter that his brother remembered. In that same instant Link appeared three feet to the right of the slicing flames thanks to his Wind magic teleporting him. While Ganondorf stared on confused Link rushed in and brought back the black blade before swinging it hard twisting his wrist a moment before impact. The flat of the blade rang as it made impact against the side of Ganondorf's head sending him crashing to the ground while Link struggled to get his balance and back-peddle. "You struck me with a sword..."

"It's your fault! We wouldn't be in this situation if you hadn't listened to that damned freak!" Link growled under his breath not having the energy to yell anymore. As Ganondorf rose to his feet he glared at Link with a cold look that chilled the Hylian, his brother was a berserker sure, but that look made him feel something else.

"I won't hold back then." The Gerudo spoke low and calm while the flames began to burn along the 'Master Sword' again. As Ganondorf moved in Link rose his iron sword to meet the flaming sword, anticipating the force this time Link grasped the handle with both hands and closed his eyes while bracing his body but he barely felt the blow as he heard the clang of metal meeting metal, but that wasn't quite right.

As Link slowly opened his eyes he saw that his iron sword had been cut clean through at an angle with violet flames flickering along the stump. A moment later the tip of the 'Master Sword' was leveled in front of Link as he stared up the blade to meet his brother's dark gaze. "Gan-"

"Silence! This is the last time I'm telling you. Leave." Ganondorf's voice boomed as an order and before Link could say anything Ghirahim stepped over lowering Ganondorf's arm.

"No worry Master, the guards are already on there way~" Ghirahim remarked coldly still wearing his smirk and Ganondorf looked away while making the sword vanish in black flames.

"I'm coming back for you, bet on it." Link choked through a lump in his throat glaring at his brother before pushing off the ground and moving around the two men heading through the large archway reaching down to grab the other half of the iron sword.

In this chamber he stopped and clutched at his chest feeling the pain radiating through him that made his whole body burn. He knew he didn't have time to stop but he couldn't help it, the pain was too much as the scene replayed over and over each second, his brother betrayed him...

Mas... Lin... Link's gaze shot up expecting something after hearing that strange sound but it was dead quiet in the soldier's lobby. In fact the only thing was a statue holding some kind of cloth with fragments of metal laid across it. As Link stepped closer he could see the design he recognized in all the lore, this was the Master Sword, but it was shattered. A look of confusion passed over his face but he heard soldiers and quickly took a breath focusing his magic once more and as a silent breeze blew over his skin he grabbed the cloth and secured the pieces within before darting down the halls.

There were a number of close calls, and more than once he got turned around but eventually he made his way out the front door with his magic to thank for not getting caught. Now back in the fountain square he sat on the edge a few moments after his mana dropped too low to sustain the Shadow magic any longer. His breath came in a short heaves while Link stared at the stone under his feet, he had spent so long trying to get here and now it felt like he lost Ganondorf.

Although that thought made Link look up towards the East where the red lights came from, sure enough far down the road he could see the gate to Eldin sealed shut, so that meant Ghirahim was lying to Ganondorf and manipulating him. A deep sigh punctuated the night, he had no idea of what he could do to reach his brother let alone with that freak around him all the time.

"What do I do next?..." Link quietly spoke to the night while looking up at the black sky. The indigo cloth in his hand felt warm while he clenched the broken sword so tight his knuckles turned white. After squeezing his eyes shut Link finally let out a breath he didn't know he was holding and quietly looked down at the broken blade. It meant the world to him that Ganondorf had it made for him and now the blade was unusable, a tinge of anger ran through the blonde but he shook his head and stored the other half of the blade as well as the makeshift indigo bag filled with the fragments of the sword. With everything put away Link quietly pushed himself off the fountain standing up before looking to the path he had taken to get back to the fountain square. Although as he began to head over he heard a crowd of people in the red-light district hollering and having a good time. Now that he thought about it, that was where he found himself in the wine cellar...

"One drink couldn't hurt..." Link sighed before turning and heading back into the scarlett filled streets. A few beautiful women; Hylian, Gerudo, and Zora, winked and waved at him while winking or pursing their full painted lips making Link blush faint and look away as he looked for a place that served alcohol and sure enough he found one. Almost four block in, a 'saloon' like the one in Kakariko stood with a number of patrons all hanging around the building with a drink in hand, a grumble echoed in Link's voice not feeling like dealing with people as he stepped up toward the door where a man that seemed to be a bouncer stood in front of the door questioning the man who wanted to enter.

"Welcome to the Salty Spigot, how tough are ya?" The bouncer asked in a gruff voice like he smoked from a pipe since he came from the womb.

"I killed a bokoblin." The man in front grunted.

"And?" The bouncer asked unimpressed.

"By skinning it alive." The grunting man responded almost like a growl.

"Nice bro, head on in." The bouncer approved of the man before stepping aside and letting him inside. Now that Link stepped up to see him, the man looked dirty with thinning hair no shirt and a heart tattoo on his right arm with 'MOM' inside of it. "Welcome to the Salty Spigot, how tough are ya?"

"I've killed a Queen Dodongo?" Link offered slightly confused before the man burst out laughing.

"Oh that's a good one kiddo, Queen Dodongo, everyone knows those are just a myth! Hahaha!" The bouncer continued to laugh as Link glared and stepped up reaching to grab the man's family jewels and tightened his grip staring into his eyes as a red flash appeared in his blue eyes. The bouncer croaked and fell to his knees while his voice jumped three octaves. "I-I mean go right in..."

"Sir."

"Sir!" The bouncer squeaked before Link let go and stepped over the bouncer entering the saloon and heading straight to the bar, unbeknownst to him though a set of purple lips spread into an amused grin.

"What can I get ya?" The bartender asked as Link took a seat. Once he looked at the bartender though Link was floored, the man was easily taller than Ganondorf and wore a black trench coat over a leather vest while a set of jet-black shades sat on his face.

"Um... Just ale plea-" Link began before another voice cut him off, smooth melodic and seductive.

"Get him a Deep Dive, Rodin." Link turned to see the woman as she walked over sitting beside him with a coy little smile. The Zora woman looked roughly his age though she was an Oceanic Zora so she didn't look as fishy as most common Zora, instead she looked almost Hylian though her 'hair' was made up of numerous tendrils that easily could be hair and she had blue to pink veil-like fins curving back along her hair almost like a tiara. While her deep violet eyes looked into Link's, her lips were a brilliant purple and her skin was pale almost a shade of blue while subtle ridges of those fins decorated her body, one set along her neck almost looking like a choker. She wore a pink to white tank top which pushed up her generous bust while revealing her shoulders, arms, and flat stomach. Around her waist she wore a shimmering blue length of clothe that wrapped around like a skirt but had a more exotic look while it was fastened with a gold and blue charm made up of crescents... Wait had he seen that before?

"One Deep Dive, Hop you're ready brotha." The man shook his head with a chuckle as he worked the liquor behind the bar into a tall thin glass. Link's gaze then moved back to the Zora who was still looking into his blue eyes with a smile.

"I saw you handle the bouncer on your way in, that was pretty hot." She spoke with a low soft voice almost like she should be singing as she reached over to rub down his arm, her touch cool but pleasant.

"I'm just tired of people's shit... It;s been a long, bad day." Link quietly admitted thinking about Solvale, the girl shrouded in fire, and his brother. A low groan escaped his lips as he rested his head on the bar.

"Aww poor thing, I'll take care of you." The Zora had slipped from her seat and moved beside him hugging around his shoulders making him keenly aware of how pleasant her cool body felt and the size of her breasts pressing into his shoulder.

"Okay?" Link quietly agreed figuring she had meant keeping him company and to be honest she was really attractive. It was then that the large man set down the glass with a solid thunk nearly making Link jump as he sat up. Within the glass was a thick blue liquid that held blueberries suspended inside while muddled fruits sat in the bottom adding to the effect of the blue drink.

"That'll be 5 rupees." The man said with a smile and Link nodded as he began to reach for his bag but a soft sharp bite caught his shoulder and made him wince as he looked back at the Zora. She simply grinned and lifted up her purse taking out two red rupees before holding up her index finger. Rodin took the money and reached beneath the counter and slid her over a gold key with a '1' embossed on it.

"Thanks Roddy`" The woman cooed while picking up both the key and the drink before hooking her arm through Link's and gently tugging him to follow her. He was starting to wonder why she was trying so hard AND paying for the drink if she was the same as Ra'za was. With a shrug he slid off his seat and followed the giggly Zora up the stairs to a room with a '1' marked on the door before she quickly unlocked it and slipped inside pulling Link after her and locking the door again behind them.

"Um... Not to be rude but I don't have the money for 'that' kind of company, I;d also rather not pay for it." Link quietly spoke while rubbing the back of his head and the Zora's vast purple eyes stayed locked on his while her lips pressed to the glass taking a sip of the drink.

"Darling, I want you, that's the bottom line." The Zora smiled and lightly pressed the glass to his lips urging him to take a drink which he did slowly but was quickly surprised by the sweet flavor and the very light taste of alcohol. She then gently tipped it further letting Link drink most of it before she herself finished the fruit with a smile before gently grabbing his shirt and leading him over to the bed beside the red lamp that cast a soft pink light. She got to work slowly taking off his gear and setting it at the foot of the bed; sword, shield, bag, and quiver "Sit back."

Link did as he was asked, easily buzzed by the liquor watching the Zora woman as she crawled onto the bed with him as well. "W-Wait, what's your name?"

"Hehe such a gentleman." The Zora cooed before leaning over him and pressing her lips to his cheek and whispering in his ear. "Rutalia."

"Mmm pretty." Link peacefully commented while she lifted his shirt and mail off his torso her face getting a light blue flush as her fingers ran over his fit body and lingering on the scars. Link could see her bite her lip before her purple eyes met his and she leaned down to kiss him soft and deep. Her lips, like the rest of her gentle body, were cool to the touch and her breath was just as sweet as the drink from earlier as her lips met his again and again. Taking a quick break she leaned up to take off her tube top revealing her blue nipples and freeing her breasts before leaning back down claiming Link's lips against as her body pressed into his, soft to firm.

"My Hero." Rutalia playfully cooed against Link's lips while reaching down to take off the gold and sapphire clip making the shimmering blue skirt fall from her noticeably curvy hips and her perky ass. Link's hands moved along her skin holding her as they kissed feeling Rutalia move over him slowly working off whatever undergarments she was wearing before her hands found their way to Link's flat stomach. They began to move lower while her knees kept her body propped up enough to undo Link's trousers and slip her hand inside earning her a moan from the Hylian as she wrapped her hand around his hardening shaft gently stroking it while sucking on his lip.

"Ahh Ruta." Link gasped while the Zora smiled against his lips feeling his strong hands hold onto her body firmly despite his inebriated state. Under her touch he quickly grew harder while Rutalia kissed down to his neck nibbling gently before her pale violet tongue slipped out tracing down his warm firm chest. Her trail dipped lower across his flat stomach where she softly bit him again sucking affectionately while her hands worked his trousers off his hips then off his legs leaving her latest catch as naked as she was. A soft moan made Rutalia release Link's skin revealing a bruise while his hot member now pressed between her soft cool breasts making her purr softly and her hands traced along his thighs before she leaned up freeing his cock from her cleavage.

Her eyes seemed to glow as they looked at his cock and Link could see her bite her lip when she moved back down softly pressing her purple lips to his throbbing tip. The Zora's lips slowly parted taking in the head of his shaft causing Link to groan deeply as her wet, smooth, pleasantly cool tongue slipped around it in slow circles and before her tongue pushed further peeking out from her lips as she lapped along his hot cock letting out soft groans while focusing on his tip her tongue teasing the rest of his length every few licks. As she finally lifted her lips from his manhood she let out a pleased breath, thin, clear, strings connecting her lips and his polished tip. "Mmm you taste good but I want more."

Rutalia smirked with a hunger in her eyes while she moved over him again sitting over his legs before reaching down to spread her saliva along his cock with a few strokes. The slick strokes made Link grip the sheets of the bed tighter as she finally gave the rest of his shaft attention, though that ended as quickly as it came and he felt the Zora move forward and his blue eyes met her purple as she began to press is tip against her deep blue lips making her eyes squeeze shut in pleasure while her wet lips spread over Link's tip but her entrance was so tight he couldn't quite fit.

"Nayru, I love Hylian men." Rutalia groaned while slowly pushing harder to the point that Link thought she would hurt herself but as he reached up to hold her waist his tip finally popped into her tight hole. The sudden surge of feeling made Link's grip tighten and instinctively thrust further into the blue-skinned woman hilting his cock inside her. "Fuck! Yes!"

"So damn tight..." Link gasped against Rutalia's heaving breast while feeling her tight walls squeeze around him, and something else as well, it was like small bumps lined her pussy pressing into him and undulating like she was rocking her body on top of him even though she wasn't moving. The Zora groaned low and deep as her fingers and thighs clung to Link her body shivering and he felt her wetness pour over his thighs having cum from spreading her open.

"Mmm, I'm not done yet lover boy." Rutalia cooed as she leaned forward and began to rock her hips moaning softly as her tight pussy squeezed and wrapped around the Hylian's hard shaft. The pleasure he felt from her cool walls felt so different compared to the heal enveloping him when he was with Cindy, it wasn't bad but it felt so different he wondered how other forms of sex felt. Her lips pressed against his hard as her rhythm increased rocking her body with his finding his hands and guiding them up to her breasts moaning into the kiss as he squeezed them. Her tongue intruded into his mouth and he nipped it gently sucking it as she yelped softly at the sudden bite but giggled dropping her hips a little rougher as payback drawing a deep groan from Link making him release her. "Oh Nayru yes! I'm so fucking clo-"

"Princess!" A Zora man broke through the door shocking Link out of his pleasant buzz as Rutalia turned glaring at the soldier who looked between them both ignoring the princess's glare, wait princess? Suddenly a bright blue glow shone from the Zora's spear before aiming it at Link and firing a bolt of what looked like electrical energy. "Die you impure filth! How dare you defile the princess!"

*Intercepting fatal magical projectile.* A familiar voice reached Link's ears as he saw the Clockwork Shield fly in front of the blast in it's avian form before closing it's wings in time to block the blast and sending the shield flying across the room. At this point Rutalia had already gotten off Link and closed the distance to the soldier before punching him hard in the jaw knocking him over but he was quickly followed by two more soldiers.

"Princess?" One of the soldiers questioned looking at the out cold Zora before looking at Link who was quickly getting dressed again. A deep sigh escaped his helmet before he gave Rutalia a disapproving look. "Again? Just because our Sage loved a Hylian Hero doesn't mean every blonde haired, blue eyed boy is the next Hero."

"Shut up! I'll fuck whoever I want!" The princess snapped at the elder Zora while the blue of her skin turned red.

"Grow up! Your little dream to succeed Ruto just landed another Hylian in jail!" The Zora fumed looking at Rutalia with a frustrated expression as she turned away from him to grab her clothes growling under her breath.

"Sorry Hero, if it means anything you were a great lay while it lasted." Rutalia apologized with a small smile and kissed his cheek while the elder Zora stepped toward him with a set of shackles and the other soldier stood behind him with his spear at the ready.

"Wait please, I didn't know she was the princess, she bought me a drink and-" Link began explaining but the Zora leaned forward attaching the shackles to the Hylian's wrists. With a jerk of his head, the other Zora went around to pick up the rest of Link's gear. Rutalia watched still frustrated before leaving the room and tossing Rodin back his key which he caught with two fingers without looking up.

"Sorry princess, I can't lie to the law." The man apologized with little empathy in his voice, if anything it seemed like he was used to her doing this which made Link shoot a glare at him.

"I apologize young man, the princess knows the law and yet she keeps doing this. It has been royal decree that only a Hero may wed or bed Zora royalty yet she continues going out hunting." The man shook his head solemnly as he lead Link out. The man seemed genuinely sorry though that did little to sway Link's fear as they left the bar and they already had a horse drawn carriage with a cage attached to the back of it. The soldier with his gear stowed it inside the carriage after Rutalia climbed inside and the soldier that the princess had knocked out followed shortly after the elder Zora opening the cage for Link to enter.

"Wait! Please this isn't right!" Link began to plead but the Zora shook his head and gently guided him inside before locking the cage.

"I know it isn't but the law is blind." The elder Zora met his eyes sadly before moving around to enter the carriage while the soldiers climbed into the lead and whipped the reigns. This moment was the only time he had heard this district quiet the whole night as everyone stared on a few looking sad while others laughed saying he was was the man-eater's latest victim. A deep sigh passed his lips when the cage passed fountain square again.

"I guess one drink did hurt..." Link quietly mused listening to the sound of the horseshoes and the wheels on the stone. The carriage paused and as far as Link could see they were at the Western Gate leading into Lanayru's domain. Wait this could be his chance, if Castle Town was locked down they may not be able to leave and they'd let him go. That hope was dashed as he heard mechanisms move before the carriage began to move again. A vein began to throb in Link's neck as he stared at the gate as they passed through. "YOU HAVE GOT TO BE FUCKING KIDDING ME!"


	14. Favors and Duty

**14\. Favors and Duty**

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 **Thanks to Light and LogosLogic for reviewing! I encourage all my readers to let me know what they think. ^^**

 **Also for pronunciation reasons: Rundyna; rune+dyna[mite]**

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As Link's eyes slowly opened he saw the dark sky above him and felt a hard surface behind his back. To his left was the young girl in green once more while the woman in blue slept beside him with her head across his lap her long blue hair fanned out over his legs. As Link moved he felt the hard surface behind him was a rock used to prop him up rather than the warm soft woman in red that had been there every time prior.

It was after that realization that he felt the girl squeeze his hand drawing his gaze to her but she wasn't looking at him, she was looking towards the edge of the grassy clearing where the woman in red stood. At her feet the grass had turned black and just looking at her made him feel cold inside, before link could get up to go to her the girl in green held onto him tightly, afraid.

"Power is corrupting..." The once warm comforting voice was now choked and Link could see her right hand had turned black. Her outline seemed to waver like a black flame and the girl in green slowly shook her head before looking to Link her emerald eyes pleading him.

"Not again... Save them." The girl whispered as she gently let go of his hand to reach up and place her small hands over his eyes and placing him back in darkness.

~X~

Link's eyes then shot open as pain wracked his side, his breath came out in pained hacks while he sat up holding his side thankful it wasn't the side he had been stabbed with the stinger shard. As his vision slowly cleared he looked up to see the Zora soldier from earlier that Rutalia had punched out glaring down at him while the back end of his spear moved back through the bars and Link would've grabbed it if he wasn't having such a hard time breathing.

"Maybe if you wake up when we talk to you this wouldn't have happened." The Zora spat at Link before starting to unlock the cage.

"Go to hell, fish bait." Link shot at the Zora with a glare that mirrored the Hylian's look and it was at that moment Link realized that this Zora had more piscine features than Rutalia did, even though he was buzzed she still appeared mostly human. This soldier had obvious blue scales and gills along his neck before his body was covered in blue in silver armor, his eyes were pitch black and his mouth lacked lips. Those were the main differences Link could spot given the Zora's fish tail-like helmet. With a rough pull the soldier opened the cage ushering Link out.

"Get out defiler." The soldier grunted while standing aside for Link to get out, which he did slowly stepping onto the stone underfoot before looking around the area. Where the carriage and makeshift prison cell had stopped looked like a road along the side of a river however upon looking over more of the area Link found it was closer to a cave with high stone calls carved from the water also leaving a large hole above where the light shone through. To the South was a building beside what looked like a dam at the river's edge or maybe a fishing spot and to the East was a single door placed into the stone wall with brick steps placed before it, if Link didn't know better he would swear that the door had nothing behind it but stone. However Link was proven wrong as a young man walked out and Link's eyes grew wide

"Okay, see ya next time cousin!" It was the man who worked at 'Coro's Stop and Fuel'! Link instantly moved and ducked behind the cell peering around the cage and the Zora watching the man as he began to walk down the road the carriage had come up.

"What are you doing?" The soldier questioned annoyed lowering his spear.

"Shhh, that guy tried to kill me before." Link quietly hissed while glaring heavily at the young man as he moved out of view.

"Shame he didn't finish the job." The Zora quipped before reaching down grabbing Link's arm and pulling him to his feet which served to aggravate the Hylian more.

"What the hell is your problem!" Link snapped rounding on the soldier pushing him away with his cuffed hands.

"You Hylians think you can do whatever you want just because of that hero." The soldier growled before grabbing Link's arm again and pulling him along the path ahead through a wide cave that the river ran through. That answer however quieted Link not particularly understanding while he followed the soldier until they exited the cave making Link instinctively close his eyes from the ambient light before slowly opening them again.

"Whoa..." Link silently spoke looking around, around them, pure white marble walls rose towards the sky and much of it was already carved into making a spiraling pattern like the inside of a seashell as the top of the marble walls reached the impeccably blue sky above that shone down with bright rays illuminating multiple shells that were embedded into the walls like fossils. But more than that the sunlight revealed the depths of the massive sapphire lake that made up the center of the area that delved so deep there was a point where Link could only see pure blue. However the water didn't stop the architecture and the spiral continued down below the water as well serving as even more space for the huge amount of Zora that occupied what he could only now assume was Zora's Domain. Although the majority of the residents were Zora he could make out handfuls of Hylians and even a couple of Gorons.

The cave Link had entered from seemed to be a run off channel for the water and directly across the sapphire lake stood a massive waterfall where the spiral design ended and a cave of sorts seemed to sit at the waterfall's mouth. However, before Link could get a better look at the waterfall the shaft of the soldier's spear connected with Link's back making him stumble forward. Once he got his balance back Link shot a look at the Zora with a low growl before he walked past the Hylian grabbing his arm yet again. "You Hylians always get so awestruck when you see the water."

Before Link could snap at the man he noticed everyone watching him, guarded, like he was a criminal, however some older Zora seemed to understand what was happening and shook their heads. The looks quelled Link's uprising enough that he didn't try to explode in fire again to get away but he hated he looks all the same. As the soldier guided him along the Eastern edge of the pool, judging by the angle of the sun, Link saw that many of the Zora looked similar to the soldier and the elder one he had saw before. Although now that he had control of his cognitive function he noticed that very few of them, maybe one in every ten, looked like Rutalia did, while they were all humanoid the majority had greatly accentuated piscine features, like their' fins, scales, gills, many even having a fish for a hea- that explains the helmet now. Rutalia however seemed vastly closer to a Hylian compared to the others and every so often he caught sight of another Zora that had those more Hylian-ish traits. Although Link's line of sight became interrupted as he and the soldier entered a marble hall with large sections carved out so that it was just as visible inside and out, smaller pathways lead into the marble and away from the water but the soldier didn't slow his pace as he brought Link around to a somewhat larger opening and within he saw a large open chamber with smaller sections separated by bars.

A jail... great...

"So... I take it the whole jail thing wasn't a joke?" Link quietly asked, a small bit of hope floating in his tone before the soldier sniped it out of the air with a glare. As they reached a cell Link heavily debated lighting himself on fire to get away but the sight of his gear being looked through by another Zora. "Hey! That's my stu-"

"Silence." The soldier cut off Link as he tossed him into the cell before closing it as the blonde struggled to his feet.

"At ease..." The other Zora spoke quiet and bored while she sat on the ground looking through his bag. The soldier looked at her before huffing and going over to a desk fashioned from coral beside the entrance. Link's gaze moved to the Zora as her bored tone spoke up again quickly losing his fondness for the race of fish people. "So... our magitech researchers took your shield, sorry about that, the rest of your stuff is here though."

"You assholes took my shield?!" Link yelled at the girl who finally looked at Link, she was like Rutalia but different at the same time. She had crimson hair that fell down over one eye while the rest was held up in a ponytail, her visible eye had yellow sclera, red iris and slit pupils. Her skin seemed to have the same texture though it was a more obvious blue than the other Zora. Her frame seemed rather lithe, a far cry from Rutalia's buxom build, one more akin to a fighter than a dancer. Her lips slowly split into a wide grin showing off rows of sharp teeth like razors making Link take a step back out of instinct given the short distance despite the bars between them.

"You're lucky that's all we're taking." The girl whispered before leaning back and rising to her feet with a grin on her face. The red-head quickly pivoted on her heel before starting to walk away leaving Link to glare after her taking note of the simple dark clothes she wore in contrast to the heavy accessories or armor he had seen on other Zora. As she reached the soldier though Link noticed another Zora had entered the room and was now talking to the female while the soldier stood at attention. As Link stood he saw the Zora was considerably older than the others with cream and purple tones accenting his features along with golden scales, wide flowing fins spanned from his shoulders, elbows, and waist like robes. His eyes then shot over to Link and he felt a strange tug within him before the Zora looked back at the female that nodded her head before stepping back. In the next moment she opened her hand and a blue mark glowed as water formed as a spear in her grasp and she then swiftly brought it around hitting the soldier's neck making his body go limp over the desk.

"It's really such a shame that he has to be in charge of detainment..." The older Zora spoke with a sigh while the girl shrugged and picked the keys off him.

"Hey if you want this to quit happening tie Rutalia's legs together or abolish the 'royal decree'." The female spoke with a bored expression while crossing the room again to unlock Link's cell. As she stepped closer Link's instinct was to step away but he judged it would be better to have his hands free as she unlocked his cuffs.

"The former would be easier, the latter would imply we don't value our royal line." The Zora sighed regrettably while bowing his head to Link. "I'm sorry for my daughter's... 'exploits' she is far too enthralled with the Water Sage's legend."

"If it wasn't for her we wouldn't have to knock out Sunam and free a Hylian every other week." The girl muttered while leaning against the bars of the cell and handing Link his gear. "I am sorry about your shield though. When your stuff got here we had a guest from The Reef and we had to keep up appearances."

"...The Reef?" Link quietly asked as he took his bag back setting his sword on his hip rather than his back.

"Oh, it's the Oceanic Zora capital. Most of us in Hyrule are native to in-land waters." The male Zora explained as he came to stand a few feet away from the female offering Link a light smile. "The exception being Rutalia and Rundyna here, my daughters belong to both castes."

"Right..." Link answered while he took stock of everything in his mind and his gaze eventually fell to the unconscious guard. "I take it, I can't stick around."

"That would be correct I'm afraid, Sunam feels the royal decree should be followed to the letter. He is a good man at heart though somewhat over reaching." The man sighed lightly while stepping aside so that Link could step out before beginning to make his way out of the room expecting Link to follow. The Hylian cast a look at Rundyna who gave him a shooing motion while she herself sat back down against the bars like he had found her, though she shot him a grin as he followed the other Zora. "Unfortunately you also cannot leave the way you came because the entire path back down to the castle borders water ways and you'd be caught within hours."

"Then how do I get back to Castle Town?" Link asked not wanting to climb inside of another crate as the two walked along the marble hall in the same direction that Link was lead previously. Soon they reached another large path way though this one was positioned behind the waterfall that fed the area with it's perfect water.

"Well, here this should help get you back in," The man handed Link a folded letter and as Link scanned it he learned the Zora King's name, Ralis. "As for getting back however, you'll need to leave through this path, it will lead you Northwest to Hebra and there you will find the Yetis, they are an incredibly hospitable and gentle sort, they will be able to help you from there."

"I haven't been to Hebra..." Link quietly commented before putting away the letter. Ralis nodded his head before turning reaching into a satchel Link hadn't noticed hung between his fins and pulled out two small packages one with a pink mark handing them to the Hylian who looked back at him.

"Some food for the trip, the pink one is for the Yetis when you get there." Ralis explained while Link stowed away the food grateful to the Zora King. "Well then, you'd best be off now, he won't be out for much longer but you should be fine once you're in Hebra."

"Thank you King Ralis, I appreciate your help, regardless of the circumstances." Link said softly before stepping down the path and beginning to leave Zora's domain behind him. As he continued through the white tunnel he eventually lost the light of the sun bouncing off the white marble and it turned to earth and stone but much of it was coated in a lowing blue lichen that lit the path. The path seemed to take hours and hours as he trudged through the path that he could swear was carrying him straight North. Soon Link yielded to his stomach and took out the package that Ralis had given him and upon unwrapping it he found grilled fish which instantly reminded him of home. The days he and Ganondorf spent fishing, or rather Link fishing and Ganondorf complaining about being bored, that memory was enough to make Link smile a bit and remind him what he was doing everything for. As he took a bite he could taste seasonings that were new to him as well as simple familiar ones, though the fillet of fish lasted a solid ten minutes as Link continued on finally seeing a white light near the end of the path a short ways after the blue lichen faded.

Cold air assaulted his lungs before Link could step out of the cave and the change forced him to cough, his muscles contracting from the unexpected cold filling him. After a moment of getting his breath Link blinked his eyes trying to see through all of the white before him as snowflakes drifted down from the solid gray sky above him. A shiver ran through Link's body as he rubbed his arms not expecting this much cold even though Cindy had told him about the ice and cold. Through the mostly clear air Link saw a simple path extend down below him and it abruptly turned left curving around to path carved up through the next slope. "Out of the fire and into the freezer... I miss Volga..."

Thoughts of the dragon filled Link's mind as he moved down through the snow and along the path, in the path itself the snow came up to Link's shins but on either side the snow had to sit at three feet deep at least. The sudden realization made Link more aware of his surroundings while reaching down to pull the cleaved blade from it's sheathe using it in a reverse grip like a knife, just because it wasn't the same weapon didn't mean he couldn't find a way to use it. A moment later he could feel a rustle in his bag and as he reached in he felt the familiar wooden handle meet his hand as he pulled free the Gale Boomerang with the spirit waving at him as it sat on the crook of the bow. ~Think of a bubble and throw.~

Rather than questioning the spirit that faded as Link brought his arm back he visualized a sphere in his mind before throwing the boomerang and as it shifted through the air it quickly came back to Link before beginning to orbit him and creating a small warm whirlwind around him his own body heat warming the currents. "Heh thanks Gale."

The winds responded with a brush against his cheek like a caress before he continued forward without being hindered by the cold flakes of snow. As he began to climb the slope on the opposite side a low crunching sound in the snow made his grip tighten and his stance shifted mid-step bending his legs while his eyes scanned the white environment and his long ears homed in on any additional sounds. There was the crunch again and judging the distance Link crouched low before it moved in he moved low, staying under the white creature's attack before rising up and driving the blade through the beast's side using it's own downward force and Link's rising motion to force his blade through like butter. A heavy thud filled the air as Link twisted on the ball of his foot and pushed back flipping back out of range while his black blade now gleamed with crimson. Wait, crimson? Link's eyes focused as hot blood escape the body of a polar bear a bit larger than himself staining the ice. A low sigh passed his lips seeing the creature had passed in an instant but now he couldn't harvestit, not well enough to show the creature respect.

Link had always been taught that a hunter didn't waste what they killed it was how they respected their kill. A deep furrow worked into Link's brow as he looked over the body, given the size he could guess it had to weigh at least four-hundred pounds, at the very least. "Dammit..."

In a fluid motion Link sheathed the black blade before going over to to the bear and lifting its paw over his shoulder and making sure he got a solid grip before pushing hard digging his heels into the snow to get a solid push and thanks to to the blood and snow the bear slowly slid behind him making the process slightly easier. The short amount of climb Link had left was enough to force his breathing to rags as his body burned from the effort of dragging the beast along the way. Link would be damned if he just left the body to freeze, or worse, rot, at the very least if he could get it to the yetis maybe they could harvest it.

That was when he heard another loud crunch and his hand moved back to the blade on his hip watching the snow as another large figure made its way towards him. No doubt a predator that had smelled the blood and as it closed in Link pulled the blade while dropping the bear's arm preparing to fight. However the creature that walked out of the snow stood at least three times link's height and was just as wide with massive arms and white fur covering it's body. It came to a stop as it saw Link and after staring at him for a moment let out a loud laugh that shook the ground beneath the Hylian.

"Hylian poke bear to death hahaha!" The creature bellowed before looking at him with a huge grin. The hunter however narrowed his eyes slightly, was this thing really making fun of him for killing the bear? "Excellent killing, let Yetar cut."

Before Link could say anything the creature moved to his side and lifted the bear onto his shoulder like Link would a small deer. The sheer amount of strength the creature had was astonishing and as it began to head back into the snow it paused looking back to Link expecting him to follow. With a shrug Link moved to follow the being that he could only guess was a Yeti that he had heard about given how friendly the creature was. "Thank you, I was having trouble pulling that."

"Not problem, easy for Yeti!" The wooly creature boasted making Link smile a bit as he relaxed and kept pace while his little whirlwind came the snow from his skin. As they finally crested the hill Link stared in awe at the large structures built along the mountain sides, they looked as if the mountains themselves had been carved into the shapes of caves and huts but their sheer size is what truly staggered Link as it reminded him of the gate to Hyrule Castle. "Here."

The creature's booming bass drew Link's gaze to a cave off to the left and Link followed him inside where he was greeted with a wall of warm air as a fire crackled in the deep recessed pit. Yetar however was already at work having strung up the bear with a large tub beneath it and used a particularly sharp rock to cut it from top to bottom making Link wince slightly at the rough tearing sound of the flesh and stone. As the eti worked Link paced around the fire curiously looking at the tools around and noticing the large makeshift bed at the back of the cave. "So you're here alone?"

"Yes, leaving too." The Yeti responded plainly sitting on the cave floor his large brown eyes now on Link. "Tribe left days ago, too dangerous now."

Link quietly nodded sitting by the fire and facing the large creature before reaching into his pack remembering the other package from King Ralis, after a moment he found the pink marked bundle and held it out to the Yeti. "I'm sorry to hear that, Ralis said this was for the Yetis when I got here, guess that means you big guy."

Link explained but Yetar seemed to recognize it in a flash reaching out and unwrapping it delicately before breathing in deeply, Link didn't understand at first but a moment later he caught the pungent scent and it made him cough as he saw the Yeti lift a pink fish from the wrapping and eat it whole. The moment after it disappeared into it's mouth the Yeti let out something like a purr as it laid its massive arm across its stomach. "Reekfish is best. King give gift so Yetis help Hylians. Hunter the same?"

"I... Yeah kinda." Link admitted not proud of how he had ended up stranded up in Hyrule's frozen tundra. The Yeti nodded understanding and after letting his fish settle quickly got to work putting some things together, a number of small tools, long broad leaves roughly the length of his arm, small white rocks, and a massive pelt easily large enough to warm the Yeti which almost made Link question the creature it had killed for the pelt but decided it'd be best not to know.

"Here, strip shirt and metal to dry." Yetar told Link making him notice that his tunic was slightly damp and his chain-mail would probably be sticking to it if it weren't for the fire.

"Oh, thanks." Link replied while doing as the Yeti said leaving him in his white under shirt as he let his tunic and mail dry. The warmth finally started to sink in while Link watched Yetar work on the bear for a short while before the warmth and softness of the pelt eventually claimed the Hylian lulling him to sleep.

~X~

Low groans sounded from Link as he woke up slowly rising into a sitting position rubbing the back of his head as he looked over to Yetar. He was still working on something but to his side he had multiple bundles like the ones Ralis had given him. Link at first decided to let the Yeti continue uninterrupted but as he reached over for his tunic and chain-mail he found they were no longer by the fire where he left them. Another low groan escaped Link as he moved up onto his feet moving over to see what Yetar was up to, though as he saw it he smiled a bit rubbing his head. "You winterized it?"

"Yes, need protection or freeze." Yetar confirmed somewhat dismissively, from what Link could tell the Yeti had created a white pelt cloak from the bear the collar held to his chain-mail with magnetic stones. Around the cuffs and hems was also white fur that Link could tell was to help keep his body heat from escaping. "All part of deal with King, need reach bottom of mountains without dying."

"I really appreciate that... I'm glad you're able to take the meat from the bear too." Link responded with a grin looking over the clothing and the bundles that Yetar had wrapped while Link was asleep.

"No, meat for you, need food too." Yetar grunted as he finish the white pelt and set it down beside the bundles before lifting a sack made of the pelt as well handing it to Link. "Bag enchanted, stays cold stores bear."

"I... Thanks..." The blonde accepted the bag noticing two pockets one of which had white mist creeping from within. These Yeti must really respect Ralis if they're really willing to help strangers like this, even if it is for a fish. Yetar nodded with a smile as he tossed some of the bones and fur scrap into the fire where Link now noticed blackened bones having been burning away for a time already. "So how did you do this enchantment? I've heard that it's unique to Yetis."

"Bwahahaha no, haha not unique to us, learned from Ice Sage, found Ice plate deep in mountains." Yetar explained with a great amount of mirth but that information confused Link, all the stories he remembered only detailed seven great sages responsible for aiding Hyrule. Before Link could say anything though Yetar rose to his feet handing Link his clothing which the Hylian re-equipped feeling the warm fur brush his skin while the white cloak flowed from his back like the cowl of some great war hero, the idea didn't thrill Link but it did look pretty cool. "Show you direction, on way down mountains."

"Oh okay." Link replied following after the wooly Yeti while his curiosity got the best of him and his gaze rose up looking at Yetar. "So you said it was dangerous? What's happening?"

"Land dark, and ice here brittle for homes, search for sturdy ice." Link understood that he meant the darkness that was afflicting Hyrule and more so understood the land being inhospitable for large beings such as them. Sorin had taught him that animals often migrate or leave when an area is no longer ideal for them. Judging from the way they make their homes Link wouldn't be surprised if the homes would all be wiped away by avalanches over the next century. When Yetar came to a stop Link noticed the snow field stretching out before them and that the light had changed as it glowed through the thick clouds above. "After noon now, hurry down before dark."

"Thanks again Yetar, take care getting to your family." The Hylian smiled up at the creature who gave him a big toothy grin before heading back leaving Link to head out into the snow. The snow clung to his green tunic and the fringes of fur that had been added to his clothing as Link pushed further into the tundra. Most of what he could see was little but hills with mountains far in the distance. After at least an hour of trekking through the snow Link was beginning to miss the glowing cave from earlier.

It took all of Link's reflexes to turn and grab the edge of the precipice he had slipped off, His muscles ached from the sudden drop but Link sighed seeing more snow a few feet below him and the cliff around him was more like a series of steps leading off the frozen plateau. "This is getting fucking ridiculous..."

After letting go Link slid the last few feet to the next steppe and looked out over the decline and off to the Southwest he could make out something like a statue. Figuring that was what Yetar had been talking about Link moved down the cliff carefully making sure he didn't lose his footing on the ice. Once he had reached a flat enough area that Link could reach the statue it was just a short distance away.

"So you're the Sage of Ice?" Link mused as he stepped up to the statue, a beautiful visage of a woman with pure white hair and skin as blue as the ocean, he saw that it was made of ice though the arms were broken off of it, at it's feet laid a shattered metal platform with some kind of symbol under a golden Triforce emblem. Link was greatly interested in whatever story there was behind this, although as he felt the cold slip past his clothing he decided it would be best to push on.

A deep rumble passed through the ground as Link stepped down and a frustrated breath passed through his lips as he looked at the ground beneath him. Silence filled the air as the blonde swiftly looked around waiting for something obscene to happen to him. When nothing else happened he took a step forward and felt his foot fall out from under him as the ice fell away leaving a black abyss for the Hylian to be consumed by.

"I KNEW IIIITTTTTttttttttt..."


	15. Let it Go

**15\. Let it Go**

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 **Thank you Light, LogosLogic, and Magus for your support ^^**

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"I'M GETTING TIRED OF FALLLLLIIIIIIIIINNNGGG!" Shards of ice fell along with Link as he descended into the darkness from the tundra above. He grit his teeth feeling the sting as his skin hit the bits of ice while he looked around trying to figure something out but nothing was coming to him. On instinct he reached for the blade on his hip and pulled it free before driving it into the ice wall beside him. For a short moment his momentum zeroed out but the sudden stop of his body hitting the wall forced him to bounce off while the jerk made him lose grip on his blade.

"DAMMIT! COME ON!" Link yelled feeling pain shoot through his arm before reaching into his bag feeling Gale, his bomb bag, the igniter, a few bottles, and the spider shot. He would use the spider shot if he thought it would be able to catch the ice but he doubted it. Then an idea came to him and he withdrew one of the dragon bombs and the igniter before striking the wick and throwing it as hard as he could into the darkness. As the flickering wick disappeared Link reached back into his bag for Gale and channeled his magic into it creating a bright green glow around it before he threw it down into the darkness as well trusting Gale.

It took a few moments but the bomb finally exploded creating a bright blue then orange light, Link smirked a bit as he heard the wind rush past him from the sudden updraft and that force increased as Gale's wind burst out from the boomerang and focused into the shape of a funnel around the flame creating a flaming tornado and serving as an air tunnel to slow Link's descent until he fell out of the chasm into a large room. By now the flames had died out and Link was lowered gently by the tornado born from the wind spirit to his feet.

"Well... That wasn't so ba-" Link began to say as a sharp whoosh passed by his face and he felt warmth drip down his cheek. After touching it he saw red and as he looked at the frozen floor to see his damaged blade stuck in the ground. A low grumble passed his lips as he bent down to pull it out and place it back in his sheathe before wiping the blood from the scratch on his face. It was then that Link noticed he could, well, see; the area he now stood in was a massive cavernous void in the ice though it glowed a soft blue making it possible to see. Around Link's feet were wet spots, melted ice, and chunks of ice from above although part of the destruction was his doing. From where he stood three paths lead into the ice around him and he had no clue which way to go or if there even was a right way.

"I guess it can't be helped..." The Hylian sighed while rubbing his arms grateful for the fur keeping him warm. After looking around at each cave he shrugged and begin to move towards the one closest to him. If Link had any idea how he had fallen he could have judged which way would have lead in the direction he had been going to begin with but he didn't have the luxury between the fall itself, his failed attempt to stop his fall, and his tornado to save him from the fall. As Link stepped through the dark cave he found a source of pale light at the other end and followed it before emerging into a cavern of similar size to the last, however this time small the floor was about a foot below where Link stood and was so smooth it reflected the ceiling, however that wasn't the most pressing thing, on the floor were a number of icicle-like objects that were gliding along the surface ever so slowly and every few seconds a red eye looked up at him from within the crowd of ice spikes. Finally on the other side of the room was a door fashioned from ice in a swirling design.

"What the hell are these things?..." Link silently asked while he leaned over the edge to tap one with his boot although the moment he made contact it glowed white and the others immediately scattered away from it. From the rapid shaking Link anticipated it was about to explode and quickly dived away from the spike just before it blew up sending a wave of cold overhead. A moment later after Link was sure the action had passed he turned over to hear cracking and falling, a tug of his cloak revealed that a layer of ice had been formed over it from the blast though now it was little more than sheet ice.

"That's gonna be a problem." Link mused looking at the little spike that blinked up at him before continuing to idly float along the ice. With the amount of cold able to instantly generate ice he figured it would counter his bombs and wind may just set them all off at once. A deep grumble ran through Link's throat feeling frustrated as his eyes moved over the smooth room that was lit by a... chandelier. The massive construct of ice hung from the ceiling with soft purple flames casting light around the room. A light smile tugged at Link's lips as he reached into his bag getting the Spider-Shot and slipping it onto his arm and taking aim.

"Alright... I need for you to catch the chandelier..." Link whispered as he lined up the shot, he didn't think it was listening but a low clicking sound made him wonder if he was wrong. Once he had the shot he took it sending the black spider shaped stinger just over the chandelier so that the line arced over it before falling to the chandelier where the spider skittered around the construct securing the green line of silk that connected it back to the mechanism.

"Heh alright." The blonde grinned before tugging it lightly to make sure it was secure causing a slight sway but the chandelier was still secure enough. With a deep breath Link ran and jumped off the edge swinging over the icicles until he reached just past the half-way point, under the chandelier where his foot caught one of the creatures and just like before it started to rapidly shake and glow before detonating hitting Link in the back with the cold wave sending him flying to the other side of the room to slam through the door sending a shower of ice shards around him.

"My my, such an entrance... It may even give me a run for my money." A high-pitched male voice reached Link's ears causing him to jerk up into a crouch and reach for his shield, however he didn't have one while the Spider-Shot rapidly retracted to its place.

"Crap..." Link cursed as his hand moved to his hip instead and drew the blade in a reverse grip. Link's gaze rose to see a male laying across a throne, clad in flowing robes of blue and green while a horned helmet sat atop his head. "Who are you? Where am I?"

"You're about 500 leagues below the surface young man, and if you don't know who I am you aren't worthy to learn my name." The man spoke with a grin as he stood up before Link and with a wave of his hand the doorway behind him vanished accompanied by the sharp sliding sound of ice on ice. "You did well to reach me, I'll give you that. I designed my trial to be impassable without cheating."

"What trial?" Link questioned which made the man lose his grin looking exasperated.

"The room you just came through, really?" The horned man asked before shaking his head, making the large golden horns wave even more catching Link's attention before the man snapped his fingers drawing Link's gaze back to him. "If you had touched the floor the whole room would've gone up and turned you into a popsicle."

"...You know that helmet is very distracting right?" Link silently asked ignoring what the man had said in earnest which drew another blank stare before he waved his hand and the helmet disappeared revealing black combed back hair down to his shoulders.

"Better?" The man shot at Link who simply nodded not letting the man maintain his grandiose facade. "Oh you're gonna be exhausting, I can tell."

"I aim to please, Mr?..." Link replied while leaving the tone out trying to get the man's named.

"Oh it's Lo- wait a minute... You cheeky brat... I like you." The man grinned while shaking his head before the room became featureless like a large glass cage, the walls becoming reflective facets that showed Link in each one. In that same moment the man disappeared only to reappear all around him, in each mirror. "Now you can see my tricks boy."

"Smoke and Mirrors aren't my thing, I;ve already been in a volcano this week." Link snapped back looking around at the multiple images of the man who wore a grin before the images seemed to bend in the man stepped out from the mirrors, however there was a copy of him for each facet of the wall and they all began to walk towards the hunter. "Shit..."

"Oh? You've lost that bravado now eh? What a shame, I was hoping it would 'stick' around a bit longer." The man chuckled as he stopped and stood roughly ten feet away before conjuring a wicked wavy looking dagger in a falling puff of black and blue smoke. With a swift jerk of their wrists the daggers flew, half directly above him and half at his gut. He wouldn't be able to dodge something like thi-.

In a light pulse of wind Link was moved from where he was in the center of the room to outside of the ring of men that shimmered away while the blades had already disappeared like illusions leaving the one man with a confused look that swiftly changed to amusement. "So then, you have the gift as well. I haven't had a match with a fellow magician since Hel froze over."

~Link, throw me like on the tundra...~ Gale's voice brushed by Link's ear as he held the broken blade in a reverse grip while using the other hand to reach into his bag to pull out the boomerang. A quizzical look passed over the man's face while Link drew his arm back and threw the wind-empowered weapon creating a shell of wind around him.

"Really? A barrier? A WIND barrier at that, oh I think you've underestimated me boy." The man reacted vehemently and with an almost incomprehensibly fast swing of his arm launched another ice blade. However while it was aimed directly between his eyes it sang through the air barely grazing Link's right cheek creating an X-shaped cut when combined with the cut from when his blade fell earlier. A faint twitch moved through Link's brow realizing he had been cut again, however he was grateful for Gale's help. The man's gaze narrowed however seeing that his blade had missed and formed two before rushing toward Link head on.

~Behind you, low right.~" Gale whispered and despite Link's instincts shifted around with his blade just in time to hear a solid clink and see the man looking him dead in the eye while his frozen blade held against Link's. With a frustrated growl the man's blade faded to smoke while Link's blade passed through.

~On your right, go high.~" The wind blew around Link while he listened raising up from his position in time to catch the man coming down with his blade poised to strike down at the blonde. However his reaction allowed Link to catch the frozen weapon and direct to the side into the ground shattering it.

"Oh you're good, you can sense me somehow, maybe another sight, a spirit?" The man questioned before shaking his head and the room grew colder, cold flowing off the man as his skin turned blue and frost started to span across Link's black blade. "You've been interesting that's for sure but I have short tolerance for fights I can't win easily so I do so hope you'll forgive my little tantrum."

"Yeah well, I've dealt with worse tantrums than yours." Link shot back while grabbing the boomerang from the air and returning it to his bag. He could feel a slight lag from using magic but now he didn't have a choice or else he'd become a statue frozen in this place forever, and that wasn't going to happen. Link quickly closed his eyes and inward, drawing up the rage he had felt in his life, his brother kicking him out, nearly losing Volga, Zelda being a general bitch. As Link's eyes snapped open he lunged forward darting toward the man while ice started to grow out of the ground in chunks, as he reached the man he slammed his shoulder into him but the man just laughed.

"After all that you tackle me? Oh how you remind me of my dull, uncreative brother." The man chuckled as Link felt the blood from the cut on his cheek freeze and the pain acted as his trigger, his spark. With a piercing roar Link summoned his flames again forming a pillar of fire searing through the ice like wind across sand as the man let out an ear splitting scream and his body dissolved.

"...How's that for uncreative?" Link coughed seeing slight burn marks across his gloves and cape.

"Heh proficient enough..." The voice spoke again though it echoed around Link, with blade in hand he quickly turned ready to keep fighting however the man he saw lacked the cold quality it had, even though he was glowing blue and see-through. "You've down well, a good trick deserves another."

"What's going on? What do you mean?" Link breathed deeply not used to using fire but still stood his ground against the... glowing blue floating man... okay. However without an answer the ice froze around his feet anchoring him in place for a moment, although they shattered just as quickly before Link could do anything more than see the ice. With the fragments glittering in the air Link could see shining deep blue bands wrapped around his boots like leather as they gleamed like metal. "What are these?"

"Heh you ask a lot of questions, that's good, These are something special I think you'd be partial to the Glacier Boots." The man answered with a light grin before closing his eyes. Even without an explanation Link could feel the could around him edge away, not that it wasn't still cold, more like the cold never bothered him anyway. "Thank you for coming here, I wish you luck on your quest."

"Wait you never gave me your name." Link spoke out while still glancing back and forth with the spirit and the boots. The man simply grinned and vanished like snow while the path out was revealed once more, an edge of irritation prodded Link as he put away his blade and began to make his way out of the room. Although as he stepped through the door a loud ominous crack burst behind him.

"What now?" As Link turned to look at the room the whole thing looked like a cracked mirror before pieces started to fall away revealing a darkness.

"Shit..." The blonde gulped before turning on his heal and bolting across the frozen floor now devoid of icicle creatures. The cracks followed after the Hylian as he pushed his body hard praying with every second that he wouldn't lose traction and slip. His jaw clenched feeling his lungs burn as the cracks edged around his vision moving further than he was and as he saw the chamber he had first arrived in he pushed off the ground as hard as he could just as chunks of ice fell around him. Luckily he tumbled through the entrance just in time as the ice fell with a crash sealing off the tunnel.

"This is ridiculous... I'm guessing there's three more of you jerks too?!" Link yelled at the other caves before grumbling under his breath and raising to his feet checking himself for any injuries. After the self-examination he shrugged and went to the next cave in a clockwise motion. The blonde shook his head while he ventured into another room, this time it was a rather long room angled upwards with a shining frozen inclined floor.

"Somehow, I feel this isn't going to be as easy as I'm hoping." Link mused while moving over to the incline judging the angle to be at roughly 45* and with it being ice he knew he wouldn't be able to climb it without some kind of tool. A sigh slipped from his lips as he shrugged and leaned into the slope with his hands testing the surface and found he couldn't get a grip with his hands however as he raised his leg to try and brace himself he found his foot holding against the ice.

"Huh?" Link looked beneath his body to see that the bands around his boots were glowing and the foot he had raised now had an ice step under it anchoring him to the ice. After a moment of blinking Link had come to the conclusion he had attained Ice Magic, at some point, either way it meant he now had a way to climb the incline.

"Alright gotta keep moving..." ink spoke under his breath and rose his other leg pressing it against the ice and felt the anchor almost instantly. While focusing on using his hands for balance Link continued to climb the incline getting used to the unusual method while he climbed further and further until he was finally able to pull himself onto the top of the slide. As he sat for a moment and looked down the incline he saw the steps slowly shatter and fade into snowflakes long after Link had used them.

"It's got some lasting power, that's good." Link said aloud before climbing to his feet and looking on towards a door designed with a large mallet of some sort, maybe a hammer. With a shrug Link walked forward moving one hand to his blade and the other to the door pushing it open. As he entered the room reminded him of a massive chamber with a small set of stairs that lead him up onto some kind of platform, easily big enough to be some kind of arena.

"This is bigger than last time..." The Hylian mused while looking around until a cool wind blew across the stoic arena and bursts of snow came from all around him. Bony looking arms shot out of the ground and were now trying to pull their owners out as well, however the more Link saw of them he could see they were comprised of ice. As they reached their half way point Link, could see their skulls had horns and they almost seemed to be crudely sculpted.

"Begone foul pests!" A voice thundered through the room and bolts of lightning rained down around the arena eradicating the would-be ice skeletons forcing Link to shield his eyes from the bright flashes shielding his eyes at the same time. As Link blinked away the faint spots in his vision he saw a man standing before him, clad in only hide shorts leaving most of his muscular form bare. The man looked like he could tear a shirt with a twitch and make women swoon at the faintest glimpse, long golden blonde hair and piercing blue eyes. If anything Link imagined that he looked like some combination of Ganondorf and himself. "Good day friend! I apologize for the Jotuns, pesky things always show up at the worst of times."

"It's fine, what are y-yo-tins?" Link asked not quiet understanding but the man laughed and gestures to the black marks on the ice.

"These were, perhaps you may know them as ice-lings? The ones here are far smaller than I'm used to combating, its a shame really. However, now I have you to battle with it!" The man exclaimed mirthfully and while Link understood what he had said the only thing that really clicked was that he wanted to fight.

"Hold on who even are you? Or the other guy with the horned helmet?" Link backed up a bit eyeing the large man confused with the current course of events, why did everyone so far want to fight him?

"Oh you battled my brother, haha there will be time for names after we battle! Have at thee!" The man yelled before holding his hand out and a hammer, like the one depicted on the door formed from the ice and crackled with static. Link stared at the huge man with the hammer and slowly blinked while his mind ran a mile a minute.

"Fuck that..." Link muttered before ducking and pushing off running tot he side to create some distance between himself and the brute. If anything he hoped if he could make some room he'd have a better chance to see and learn how the man fought. However that thought quickly fled his mind as the man's hammer almost replaced the space in his head, upon hearing the whooshing of the hammer Link dropped into a roll narrowly missing the hammer as it whizzed past overhead.

"You're quite the speedy one friend, I'm glad to see you'll be using other methods of battle besides coming at me head on, heh it's never worked before." The man grinned as the hammer flew back to his hand before leaping after Link with enough force to carry him a few yards in a single step. As he landed Link felt the floor rumble slightly causing him to misstep and lose enough of his momentum for the berserker to catch up and lift his hammer above his head. "Oh, a poor step can lead you to your knees friend!"

"Shit, move!" Link growled as he scrambled to get his feet under him and push off to avoid the blow. When the heavy whoosh of the hammer began to fall Link finally pushed off but the speed at which he shot away from the crashing impact of the hammer shocked him accompanied by a soft sound like glass being cut. A moment later he looked down to see his feet gliding along the ice while his state of shock kept him balanced enough to stop him from falling on his face. Once he came to a stop he raised his foot and tilted his head seeing a blade of ice sticking out from the bottom. With a shrug he put his foot back down judging that the boots were reacting to what he needed at a time and this fixed his issue with speed, now he just had to hope he didn't fall on his face.

"Hmph, my brother's trickery aids you, I suppose I did want a different battle." The man huffed like a child about to throw a tantrum but came to a calm state after breathing in deeply. Once his eyes opened again he twisted the handle of the hammer twirling it easily with a grin before rushing at Link once again however Link now had some semblance of how to avoid him. As well as an idea of how to fight him.

"Come get it tiny!" Link shot back at the huge man whose face seemed to twist into confusion then anger as Link dropped low with one hand braced against the floor while the other hand moved to his pouch. The moment before the man reached him Link pushed off like an arrow and slide along the ice through the large gap between his legs and shifting his body to come to a stop while facing the man's back.

"How dare you accuse me of diminutive stature! I am twice your size!" The man yelled a mix of confusion and anger painted over his features while Link simply smiled and pointed at the floor between his legs. As he looked down a blue toned bomb sat with a fuse that vanished from sight, the next moment was a sight filled with bright blue light as the dragonfire bomb blew engulfing the man in the searing flames. Granted a fair amount of the blast spread across the whole of the arena but there's no way he could withstand that. Right?

"Heh... Heheh... HAHAHAHA!" The slow creeping laughter made a shiver shoot through Link's spine as he watched the blue flames fade while the man stepped out coming closer to Link while blue sparks arced across the man's body. "Oh that blast, boy was that blast something. You're mush stronger than I grave you credit for considering your size. COME! We will fight until the end!"

"Fine... I guess if that's the song, I'll dance." Link relented while his eyes held a faint shimmer of gold. This time as the man lunged for him Link bolted under his arm and behind him before leaping and twisting his body to slash his blade across the man's shoulders and the back of his neck with as much force as he could but the initial few inches of the slashes only bore sparks while the rest of the attack slid into his flesh but it was like Link was swinging his arm through water. With the attack completed Link fell to the floor on the other side using the skates to direct his momentum and keep him low tot he ground. This time the man brought his hand back that held the hammer and with Link's already low position he moved in directly jumping to plant his foot onto the man's thigh driving the blade with his weight while stabbing directly down into his shoulder. Once the blade had pierced his flesh he used the momentum from climbing the beast of a man to launch himself over his shoulder and land behind.

"Oh, yes the sting of steel is such a great pleasure I've missed the cold bite!" The man proclaimed but he never stopped laughing in enjoyment while pale blue mist escaped the wounds Link had been delivering to his large body. The sight made Link glare faintly, since it wasn't blodd he was starting to think he wasn't getting anywhere.

"Is there any chance those cuts are doing anything? Hindering, fatal, anything?" Link complained looking at the man dead on as he let out another loud laugh.

"Well I do feel pain but it's simply the thrill of battle!" The man declared proudly as his grip tightened on his hammer leaving Link to sigh trying to think of another tactic. His gaze fell to the floor getting ready to move again but it was then he saw the melting pattern in the floor from the blast and the streaks it left, the melting pattern when he had used the bomb to save himself were deeper and went in a rotating pattern.

Now he had it.

"Hey big guy! Catch!" Link reached into his bag pulling another bomb while rubbing his thumb against the wick using magic and friction to ignite it before throwing it high into the air above the man who stood up watching the blue sphere as it rocketed towards the ceiling. Using the distraction Link bolted across the ice putting more distance between himself and the man before pulling out Gale once more.

"Twister, but bring it down..." Link whispered before launching the boomerang into the air as well before wind burst from it and started to orbit in a wide arc around the man who still watched the bomb and rose his free hand preparing to catch it. However, the bomb blew just before he could catch it and the twister roared to life with orange and blue flame focusing the hellstorm of flame purely on the man.

"Heh... Heheh... HAHAhaha..." The boisterous laugh started to grow once more making Link glare as the flames faded and Gale returned to his hand once more, however as it began to die down Link saw the man's body beginning to fade like the last figure he had fought but this time his hammer fell to the ground. With a harsh crack making Link jump. "You put up a fine battle friend..."

Link quietly stared on as the snowflakes faded away just as before leaving only the hammer that sat in a small cracked crater. Was this how this whole cave was going to be? Fighting spirits that he didn't know or recognize. A low sigh permeated the cool air as he moved over to the hammer lifting it while seeing a frost-like effect along his hand but it didn't seem to freeze him. He was surprised he could even move it let alone wield it like a typical hammer. Although as the sounds of cracks splintering began to fill the room Link groaned and pushed off the ice running for the door way while the chamber began to collapse like the one before it.

This is bullshit!" The Hylian yelled as he fell into a slide reaching the inclined that he had climbed up earlier but now it already had cracks spidering across it but Link didn't have any other choice. With hammer in hand he pushed forward and drop down the slide taking care to roll out of the way of falling ice both from above and below. Although just as he reached the last third of the slope a large chunk of ice fell through the entryway destroying the bottom of the incline.

"no, no, no, No, No, NO!" Link began to chant as he came closer and closer to falling into the blackness. With a last ditch effort he threw the hammer through the opening to the chamber to free his hand before placing both palms against the surface and bracing himself. At the last possible moment Link pushed off of the ice as hard as he could using his legs at the last second, however as he did he felt himself launched from the ruined ice cavern before he tumbled through the entry seeing a pillar of ice from where he had jumped from just before the roof collapsed sealing the cavern much like the other path had.

"Why does it seem I always end up in death traps..." Link heaved as he pulled himself up from the ground brushing off the clumps of snow and ice that had stuck to him from his death-defying slide. Although after brushing off some of it he noticed the bottom of his cloak had been torn a bit probably from catching on the ice during his escape.

"Dammit... Yetar did such a good job on this..." Link quietly lamented the pristine quality of the cloak before sighing and shaking his head. The cloak still served its purpose even if Link wasn't happy that it was damaged. However that much alone had given Link a bad attitude as he looked at the last cave and picked up the hammer before he made his way into the cavern. Before him stood a large room with two statues beside each other roughly in the center of the room with about ten feet between them. The Hylian tilted his head as he stepped along the frozen floor moving closer while he stayed on guard, considering the last two 'trials' both had a challenge Link was sure the statues had something to do with it. However as he moved closer nothing happened and as he reached both of them he could see extremely fine detail in them but they didn't react at all.

"I guess, this is a freebie?" Link quietly asked the statues carved to replicate some kind of dragon however they each had rows of orbs that Link could only assume were its eyes trailing up its horns while the statue was mostly a bust detailing spikes and scales along its face and neck. Link shrugged and tapped one with the hammer causing it to shatter and fall into a pile of ice at his feet. The Hylian stto wide-eyed and slowly looked down at the pile before swiftly turning and heading for the door opposite the entrance this time designed with a sword.

"Okay time for the last one..." Link breathed out before going through, like the two before it there was a short linear path until opening up into a much larger room. This time however it opened into a large empty pit with a high ceiling. Before link there was a frozen path of ice that lead out to a platform that didn't look like it was stable at all. Upon the platform Link could see a man kneeling behind a sword that had been planted into the ice. Link slowly stepped forward trepidation filling him worried about the ice but as his foot met the cold surface but as his foot touched it a pale blue light spread out and the bands around his boots glimmered slightly.

"I guess I couldn't reach this place without the boots." Link mused as he looked back up at the figure while walking closer. As he reached the edge of the platform he could make out the subtle details of the blade, slight knicks and a simple almost crude design, like the common swords back home. Although as Link reached a few feet away from the figure it shuddered before slowly raising to his feet. As he did Link saw a man in his prime like how he had imagined Sorin while he was a soldier. The man stood tall with a mane of pure white hair, however his closed eyes hid their color from Link, like the last person Link fought he was shirtless but thankfully his lower half was clothed with black trousers that left his bare feet easy movement. However the most striking thing that Link noticed was the wicked scar at the man's right shoulder, or more accurately the scar where his right arm was missing.

"Damn, that looks painful..." Link quietly spoke looking at the wound which seemed to make the man react as his eyes slowly opened revealing pure white eyes that made Link instinctively reach for his blade.

"Fenr- No..." The man began to say before he shook his head and as his eyes fell on Link again he saw red eyes, not glowing or evil, just red. He shifted his body groaning faintly like his body was stiff but if Link could tell from his last two encounters he wouldn't bleed either. His smooth skin and muscle shifted ever so slightly in contrast to the last man's bulging musculature. After he finished working out the kinks the man set his eyes on Link and his grip tightened on his blade making the ice that had formed over it shatter off leaving the metal to gleam like it was newly forged. "Young man, why are you here?"

"I'm trying to find the way out." Link answered bluntly while the man tilted his head confused.

"You're trying to leave?" He asked slowly while his grip lessened on his sword.

"Yeah, I was trying to get across the tundra when I fell through the ice into the chamber back there." Link admitted while pointing behind him at the door.

"But you have my brothers' hammer and magic..." The man commented looking at Link's feet and then the hammer.

"They didn't ask, it kinda got hectic fast." Link said while rubbing the back of his head while the man in front of him sighed and shook his head.

"I'm sorry to say if you haven't found a way out yet you'll have to go deeper..." The man spoke while looking at the floor his brow furrowing before meeting Link's. "This place was sealed long ago to hold a spirit, however the seal pulled me and my brothers to become its guards."

"...So I have to get past you to get out." Link concluded while sighing his body visibly slumping as he looked at the man. "I take it you won't give me your name either?"

"What? Those curs didn't even give you their names? How uncivilized..." The man gawked at Link complete in shock before an annoyed anger seemed to play across his features. With a swift movement the man flipped his sword around to a reverse grip before bringing his arm across and bowing to Link. "I am Tyr, of Asgard, my brothers are Loki and Thor."

"I'm Link, I appreciate the effort but you don't have to bow." Link blushed faintly hating getting this kind of attention as he rubbed his neck.

"I do though, I must give the respect my brothers neglected to show you." Tyr declared before standing back up and shifting his stance slightly with his right foot back and his right foot forward angling his sword downwards. "I would request a duel to regain my honor."

"Really it's okay, besides my equipment is kind of... damaged." Link sighed and drew his blade showing severed length of steel to the warrior who stared at it in amazement.

"Oh the clash that caused this, I can feel the emotion from that battle from here." Tyr said as mirth filled his voice before raising his blade and tapping it to the makeshift tip of Link's blade where ice grew from the severed edge extending up and taking the form of his original blade. "That is an excellent weapon filled with your struggles, It'd be a great honor to face you and it."

"...Okay, I have to get further in this cave anyway." Link sighed with a faint smile. This Tyr was certainly an interesting character, a man he would've liked to befriend if his life ever returned to normal. Following Tyr's example Link took the same stance while setting the hammer to hang from his sheath. The two stared each other down while Tyr wore a smile and Link kept a focused look until the flats of their swords tapped each other.

"For Asgard!" Tyr declared moving first, as he stepped forward Link was caught off guard when he batted his sword aside to go into a spinning slash aimed at Link's chest. However this time Link moved with the momentum using the movement from Tyr batting his sword to flip it into a reverse grip and raise it up and block against his spin attack.

"Not quite." Link shot back before slamming his blade down making the guard catch Tyr's sword while Link threw his body forward headbutting the man and sending him staggering back.

"Heh very good, a move Thor would've used for sure." Tyr chuckled while Link flipped his blade back into a forward position before moving to the side circling Tyr while he did the same until he leaped at Link, in that moment the triforce gleamed on the back of his hand and a faint gold shine passed over his eyes. Link quickly dived and rolled as Tyr came down placing Link in a crouch behind him as his blade hit the ground, pressing the advantage Link quickly leaped up while drawing his sword up in a powerful slash across Tyr's exposed back knocking him forward a few steps as the familiar blue essence poured from the wound.

"How bout that move?" Link shot while he swiftly spun his sword in hand his focus razor sharp feeling the skill of the sword running through him. Something was resonating with Link as he readied for Tyr's next move while the man laughed happily turning back to face Link.

"Oh that move was new and I quite like it." Tyr said with a huge smile while moving his blade back to his front, the attitude was slowly edging away at Link but he couldn't tell why, the way he treated battle like a game. However his next move was so fast Link didn't expect it, he was within inches from Link in a split second before swinging his arm up with the blade. Luckily Link was able to push himself out of the way of the attack with the help of his boots that had created bursts of ice to aid his escape. Link panted slightly looking back to Tyr who was rapidly spinning his sword like a pinwheel where he had been a moment before. As Link began to move he winced and hear liquid drip and as he looked at the floor he saw crimson steaming on the ice, as his gaze followed the red he saw a gash across his shoulder.

"Ugh, dammit..." Link hissed before looking back up at Tyr who smiled and lunged towards the Hylian again with his blade pulled back ready to stab and as Link began to move it was too late, that moment he thought he saw a million blades. However, the wind saved him again placing him directly beside Tyr.

"And that was a Loki move." Tyr sighed wincing a bit as he tried to move but ti seemed the stabbing attack he had made left him unable to move for a moment. Given the pain in Link's sword arm, and the fact he didn't have a shield, his instinct took over while a faint golden aura spread over his body just as he pulled his arm back and slammed his fist into Tyr's face sending the man across the ice. Without missing a beat Link climbed to his feet and ran after him while his hand shifted his blade into a reverse grip again. Using his momentum and the ice magic running through his feet Link jumped up into the air meeting Tyr's gaze as he dropped down full force driving the frozen blade straight through the man's chest. A faint cough escaped Tyr's lips while the aura disappeared from around Link "That... Was a great move."

"Wait... What happened?" Link quietly asked shaking his head after the outburst he had, when his blue eyes finally met Tyr's red, they went wide as he slowly looked down to see the blade anchored in his chest. "Oh Hylia... I didn't mean t-"

"Silence! Don't show weakness to your enemy, this was a fine battle Link. Thank you for sending me off in this way, in return take this." Tyr cut Link off before lifting his arm and moving his sword over to Link. Slowly the Hylian took the blade and it flashed forcing Link to close his eyes but as he opened them again he saw a bow of pure ice glittering in his hand while only the snowflakes of what had been Tyr faded with the wind.

"...Thank you Tyr but that wasn't me... I know you're listening, whoever you are, _whatever_ you are, I won't give you control." Link declared gripping the handle of the bow and his blade tightly before getting up and starting to make his way out of the room while the ice began to crack once more. However what he didn't see was the phantom of a wolf sitting where Tyr had faded and as Link passed through the door the wolf's lips pulled up in a smile before it faded on the wind.

Link had already anticipated the cavern falling apart and pushed off hard willing the boots to form the blades of ice again aiding his speed while he put away the blade and bow. However as soon as his foot touched the floor of the room where the statues were orange light bloomed within the 8 eyes of the dragon statue and it roared as it turned to look at Link it's large fangs easily half his arm's length. Rather than flinching away, this time Link grasped the handle of the hammer without losing any speed and dropped into a slide just as the statue tried to snap it's jaws around the hunter. As soon as he heard the crystalline chomp he crouched and swung the hammer up as hard as he could shattering the dragon in one fell swoop.

"I don't have time for this." Link breathed and kept moving as the orange glow faded from the dragon's eyes. This time Link made it back to the entryway with a few seconds to spare before the cavern collapsed once more. A deep breath escaped from the blonde's lungs that he hadn't realized he was holding in as cracks began to splinter out from the three collapsed caves and spreading across the whole of the chamber. Finally just before the floor collapsed a blue light shot through the cracks enveloping Link in a crystalline prism, he felt weightless within as the massive chunks or ice crashed down around him.

"Am I frozen?..." The Hylian wondered as he touched the walls that rippled softly, granted the light of the prism itself obscured what Link could see as the pod lowered itself, although he did notice the wound in his shoulder had been healed which he contributed to Tyr. Once it slowed to a stop the light began to fade leaving Link a short drop as he fell to a crouch. When he stood up again he could see that he was on a large platform sitting in the center of a lake surrounded by dark water while blue light lit the area shining through the glacier overhead. Fragments of ice littered the platforms from the room he had fallen from while far out in the water Link saw massive chunks of ice, probably from the three areas he had fought Tyr, Loki, and Thor in. Although as he was scanning the waters a faint ripple spread from the water but Link hadn't seen anything fall into the water. A slight shrug rolled across the Hylian's shoulders before he turned back around trying to find a way out but as he turned he saw something, someone, the figure of a woman sitting in the thin snow.

"Are you okay?..." Link quietly asked beginning to move toward her, from about forty feet Link could see that her legs were bare and pale while the blue hair that ran down her back wasn't old and decrepit. The Hylian slowed to a stop about twenty feet from the woman remembering what Tyr had told him.

"You're the one trapped here aren't you?..." The figure slowly raised it's head as Link spoke again and then her body followed lifting herself from the snow before turning around to face the hunter. Before him stood a beauty with flowing white hair, the curves of a Gerudo, and the eyes of a Hylian. Her body clad in little material, a sash along her waist that seemed to function as a skirt, and the remains of a bra that had been covered in bits of ice to hold up where needed, particularly looking like ice covered her left breast. Now that Link was face to face with her he saw that her skin was actually a very light blue in tone while her lips were dark blue like her hair and her eyes the same blue as the icy light from above.

"Well, well, the Soul of the Hero needs me again does he?" The woman spoke with a bite that went far past cold and held an edge of something dark. Her features narrowed slightly, spite evident on her face while she gave Link a look that could freeze his soul. "I won't help you, not when it's your fault I'm stuck here!"

Link winced feeling the hatred and cold from her voice piercing him despite the magic and the warm fur. Meanwhile more ripples were forming in the water reacting to the woman's distress. "Hold I don't know what you're talking about, I'm not a hero!"

"I'm not talking to 'you'! I'm talking to the Blonde haired, blue-eyed jerk that told me I could help save Hyrule! The man who told me that I'd be called on when I was needed! The reason that I wasted my life waiting to help the feckless people of this land..." The woman cried as she closed her fists and her body quaked, tears falling and turning into snowflakes before reaching the ground.

"I was told I'd be remembered as one of the Great Sages, a savior... But no one ever came, I was left here to rot, for millenia upon millenia, all of this ice came from me while I prayed and grew stronger under Hebrana's blessing..." The woman continued to cry venting out her frustrations while the air began to sting filling with wind and ice shards. By now Link could hear the ripples turn to waves against the edges of the platform drawing his attention to the water again.

"Please wait, I don't know who you think I am but I've never been here or met you before I swear!" Link called out over the wind however that answered only madde the woman's cold gaze snap to him and with a wave of her wand multiple spikes of ice flew at Link in an instant stopping an inch from his skin.

"I know you Link, you don't remember me, but you met me eons ago. I don't care if you don't think you're 'A' hero, you are The Hero." The woman coldly snapped before she whipped her hand across his face in a slap that would've given him frostbite if it wasn't for the Glacier Boots resisting some of the cold. However with that act the icicles fell from the air just as Link did from the slap as the woman turned away from him. "My name is Zera... I know you forgot that too."

"I'm sorry or what he... What I did to you Zera... I don't know the reasons for what happened then, but there was no reason to leave you here." Link spoke while holding his face. Despite what, quite literally, everyone was telling him he couldn't come to grips that he was The Hero of Hyrule, but right now that didn't matter, what mattered was that this woman was on the verge of a break down and he was pretty positive she would kill him if he didn't try something. Zera began to rub her arm glancing back at Link, the look she cast was deeper, not filled with hate though, something else before she closed her eyes and walked away towards the water.

"You know, I would've followed you anywhere once, even fought for you. Now I wonder if they'll remember the name of the Sage that killed The Hero." While at first Zera's voice sounded soft, even almost sweet, that bitter edge returned as she shot a glare at Link. Now the water erupted as something emerged from beneath the waves and the closer Link looked, he saw scales. From the water emerged a long dragon covered of nearly-black, blue scales, its claws wickedly curved like the farming sickles he used back home while its fangs could easily crush the blades Ganondorf used, it's crown formed in a ridge of spikes. The beast's navy blue eyes were trained on Link as it growled low and Zera stroked along its neck before hoping up onto its back rubbing its horns slowly. "I bet you don't remember him either, you met him once as Lord Jabu-Jabu the protector of the Zora, however when he passed his spirit returned here and he stayed by my side all this time. I've decided to call him Javulas. Though I suppose you don't need to know all this, it won't matter in your next life."

"Zera, I don't think you want to do this, I know there's a lot of pain there but we can work through it." Link tried to reason with the maiden while she smiled and kissed one of the dragon's horns before it used it's powerful claws to pull itself out of the water and into the air beginning to fly around the platform. "Or not... I'm so fucked..."

"Too little too late Hero." Zera cooed while the dragon roared and dived towards the center of the platform leaving Link with only one option, move. As the dragon got close Link bolted and moved underneath it as it whipped its long powerful body sending a powerful wave across the platform blasting the snow and debris from its surface. Link was barely able to whether the shock wave as he hid beneath it's body and quickly drew his blade lunging up from beneath the dragon, however the blade did little more than cling harmlessly off the dragon's scales. Cursing under his breath Link quickly rolled out from under the dragon thinking of what do as the beast dropped its heavy body onto the platform in an attempt to smash Link.

"Are you just gonna keep running? You don't have the Master Sword, you don't have a shield, you don't even have a proper sword Hero, submit to the cold." Zera goaded Link as the dragon turned towards him and began to draw in a deep breath, if there was anything he learned at Highpeak it was how to spot a breath attack. Link swiftly rushed straight toward the dragon before turning on his side and stomping the frozen surface willing his magic to heed his command and it did, the ice shot up out of the ground as a wall big enough for him to take cover just before the dragon roared and fired a beam of pure cold energy causing the very air to freeze before hitting the wall, however due to the ice's surface the beam reflected back at the dragon freezing over one of its arms. As the beast reeled in pain Link's eyes narrowed and he moved out of cover using the skates again to allow him to shot across the ice as he reached back to grab the hammer and move his arm back nearing his target. Once he had reached the frozen limb Link leaped from the ground and brought down the hammer as hard as possible shattering the arm of the dragon.

"NO! Javulas?!" Zera called as she held onto the dragon while it thrashed in pain from the loss of its own arm. However the dragon thrashing left it with one choice to slam into the platform breaking off scales and revealing a gray skin underneath, but that wasn't all, beneath its scales and on its throat ink could see silver peaking out and he momentarily questioned continuing but he truly didn't have a choice. His grip tightened on the hammer as he moved again closing in on the beast's head before jumping up and bringing he weapon down in a fierce strike making the dragon stagger and fall towards the edge of the platform sending Zera flying across the ice. "No..."

Link looked back to the frozen woman sighing quietly, he never wanted to be a butcher but now he was smashing a dragon for protecting a woman that suffered because of one of his past lives. However the sharp sound of inhaling alerted Link and without thinking he grabbed a bomb from his bag and lobbed straight into the dragon's mouth silencing its inhale before the blast erupted firing a column of blue flame from its mouth while its skin visibly glowed from heat and it fell back starting to sink into the water.

"NO!" Zera's voice screeched like a blizzard and she appeared in the air beside Javulas, the force of the winds grew stronger and slowly she lifted the dragon from the platform. Link could only watch from the ground already knowing that his bow wouldn't do anything to either, probably, maybe? In a swift act of judgment Link pulled his bow from his shoulder and quickly knocked it as the winds surged forming a while wall between Zera and Link. Rather than trying to fire through the wind wall Link waited for the storm wall to dissipate. At the first sign of color Link loosed his arrow and as the wind revealed the figure behind it Link gulped seeing her holding the arrow before squeezing and snapping the arrow.

"This is gonna suck..." Link sighed while shaking his head, before him in the air floated Zera but clad in black scale armor spanning from her thighs to her feet clad in talons, a skirt of long scales, more to match her bra, from her elbows to her hands,, a helm of some sort making her white hair look like spikes but lastly a large silver spike protruding from her chest between her breasts.

"You're going to die for what you did." Zera hissed as she lowered herself to the ground in a beastly stance. Link couldn't much more now than just brace himself and wait for an opening, either way he needed that shard now. A deep growl rumbled through the girl before she shot towards Link like a bullet giving him narrow moment to dodge out of the way but his boots were no longer resonating. Looking back at Zera he could see why, she had drained the ice energy from them making them little more than stylish bootstraps.

"Shit, what else do I have..." Link grumbled trying to think, he had the bow and the hammer, surely the hammer would have enough strength to at least stagger her. Link came to a stop and faced down Zera while trying to stay calm with her seething eyes trained on the hunter. As she made her move and dashed straight for him the golden aura surrounded Link once more while the Triforce bloomed. Though Zera was already too close, in a flash Link grabbed and swung the hammer hard into the side of her head sending her skidding across the ice and dark blue blood to splatter along the ice along with a shower of scales. Zera was sure as hell still reeling from the blow as she slowly came to her feet, blood dripping from her head as the scales were now removed.

"No more games..." Zera hissed hoarsely before her eyes flashed again and the hammer shattered, given that she was the Sage of Ice he should have expected something like this. Now as she began to stalk towards him he reached back and grabbed his bow swiftly knocking and firing an arrow straight for her heart but it merely pinged off the black scales that protected her body. Two, three, four more arrows, all having the same result as they littered the icy platform leaving Zera with a wicked grin.

"No other choice... I hope this works." With a deep breath Link pulled back another arrow and channeled his magic through it like Bolin had taught him then he ignited it and let it fly, decimating the bow in its wake. However the flaming arrow flew true and pierced straight through Zera's chest leaving her to cough as she stopped and reached up to touch the gaping hole in her chest. However, as she fell to her knees the bow and scales shattered to dust from her power being snuffed out.

"Zera..." Link quietly spoke as he moved over to her kneeling beside her while she stared at her hands, covered in blue blood and tears. As her red pained eyes looked up at him he didn't know what else to do and pulled her close against him. Her eyes widened briefly before closing as she slowly relaxed, the shard slipping out from her being to lay beside them. Something deep within Link twisted in pain and he hated that, that part of him that did things like this to someone so innocent. As her breathing began to slow her fingers reached up to touch Link's face drawing his attention while she smiled soft.

"Please don't be mad at Jabu, he was trying to protect me, all these years, my resentment turned us into... What you vanquished." Zera spoke low and soft, her voice harsh from the wounds she had taken but still she clung to Link as tightly as she could. A small laugh came from her as she bit her lip and looked up at him with tears in her eyes and a sad smile on her face. "So it took you ages to give me a hug Hero? Heh please... Don't forget me..."

That was when her voice stopped and her body began to dissolve into snow freeing her once trapped spirit. A soft clatter drew Link's wet eyes to the side where Zera had dropped something, a pale blue medallion with long spikes arranged in a spiral shape similar to a snowflake. The crest of the Ice Sage sat within Link's palm as its bearer finally found peace but his body felt numb, heavy, completely exhausted. Without even being able to get up Link fell to the floor clutching the medallion in his hand as a soft blue light began to envelop him as it had times before.

-X-

Zera, the Sage of Ice. The forgotten eighth sage.

A woman who was completely dedicated to her goal of helping protect Hyrule from destruction, left forgotten to time and Hyrule alike...

A woman whose own ice pierced so deeply it froze over her heart...

A woman whose tears burned the Hero worse than Death Mountain...


	16. The Hero of Souls

**16\. The Hero of Souls**

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 **First and foremost I am sorry to everyone who follows my story, work has become hell over the summer and I just haven't had the time or energy to write.**

 **Another thing I want to address is that the theme for the last dungeon was Nordic, and unrelated to Infinity War or God of War. I've had the outline of the story and dungeons written out for a long time.**

 **Lastly, I'm planning on making more in-between chapters like the Zelda and Ganondorf one to flesh out other characters better like Magus and Impa. I'd like to get your opinion on that.**

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On a plane in between, a beast shrouded in golden specks of light found a blue crystal but didn't quite understand what it was. For eons the spirit had existed however it had never come across the hero before and gently picked up the blue crystal in its maw before flying through the plane before coming to the edge of its territory an area where ice turned to water.

After gently placing the crystal on the boundary the creature reared back and let out a call akin to something between an owl's screech and a bear's roar. The creature slowly sat down and the flecks of light slowly swirled together into a large ball of pure golden light just above its back. Soon enough the water started to shift and a golden light breached the surface revealing the head of a large serpent comprised of the same golden glow while it held another sphere of light in its maw secured by its fangs.

Lanayru tilted it's head out of a silent question before Hebrana raised one of its winged arms gesturing to the crystal to which Lanayru gazed at for a long moment before nodding its head. Hebrana cooed lightly seeing Lanayru close its maw around the crystal while the sphere faded from view. Hebrana itself resembled a large bear in stature but with the traits of an owl, namely it's head, its arms also had wings attached, and it had a large fan of feathers sprouting from its backside while all of its feathers were adorned with the same golden patterns that decorated the other spirits of light.

Once the hand off was completed Hebrana launched itself back into the air breaking the sphere and recreating the golden blizzard that shrouded it while flying back into its domain. Meanwhile Lanyru ventured back into its own territory to return the hero to a somewhat safer area...

...

Hours after Link had been returned to his plane the blonde's eyes slowly fluttered open to see the night sky above him with stars twinkling from above. The sounds of water were around him though it was far enough away that Link himself wasn't wet, but his face was. His hand rose to touch his face finding wet marks from tears he had cried while he was unconscious but before his hand touched his face he saw the soft blue medallion in his grasp and felt a bolt of pain shoot through his psyche and he closed his eyes gripping the medallion tighter.

"Zera... I won't forget." Link softly promised before taking a moment to wipe his face and pull himself into a sitting position and breathing in deep. However in a confused state he blinked a number of times not sure if he was really looking at what was in front of him. Hyrule Castle stood tall and intimidating against the black night sky.

"How?..." Link questioned while his eyes came down the structure noting the other towers and bridges making up the hulking structure, however his gaze narrowed as he reached closer to the bottom where he saw a massively reinforced wall with guards walking back and forth on top of it while the bottom of it was lined with pipes that looked like they brought in water if the wet line was any indication. Well he probably wasn't going to get through that way any time but either way he could tell he was directly behind the castle, most likely the area the Zoras had taken him through on their way to the Domain further North.

"Ugh forget it I gotta get back to Volga first." Link grunted as he made his way to his feet brushing off the dirt before he realized the familiar weight of his bag wasn't on his person and quickly looked around. First he found the mirror fragment laying on the ground about a foot away on the ground part of him silently cursed the shard and the things it had done but it was irrelevant now. After picking it up he turned it over in his grasp a few times looking at the shape before shrugging and continuing to look for his bag and as his eyes passed over a large wet depression in the ground with his bag sitting in the middle while the water from the river flowed into it.

"Oh... Great." Link sighed and moved over to the side of the depression before sliding down the muddy surface until reaching the bottom and picking up his bag finally allowing the river to stay in the area. The realization that his bag ad been taking in all of the water truly scared Link as he tilted it upside down and watched as water flowed out of it. For an hour. Until the lake had been reformed. The green clad Hylian mumbled annoyed while swimming over to where he had woke up finding the water now reached past the point where it had been before.

"Now everything is wet and soggy..." Link complained while feeling the water in his boots as well as the extra weight from all of the water saturating the fur of his clothing. The Hylian glanced back at the castle for a moment before turning toward the bridge that went across the river and following the path as it lead back away from the way the Zora had taken him. At least he knew this way would get him back to Castle Town.

As he followed the path he saw far to the east where the mountains had been carved out for the construction of more of Castle Town. The sheer amount of manpower it took to carve all of that out and even become inhabitable again amazed the boy that came from the edge of the forest. A small smile came across his lips finding it amazing just what could be done when people worked together. According to Cindy, Tabantha existed out that way as well between the tundra and the desert, that alone made sense to why the Rito lived there if they were really bird people, though the storms must be terrible.

A few moments later a bit of yellow drew his gaze to the road beside him but nothing was there as he quietly rubbed his neck. A shrug rolled over his shoulders as he saw the path leading around to another gate that blocked entry into the city. Something about staring at the massive locked gate finally made him snap and he quickly reached into his bag pulling out his dripping Spidershot and bomb bag.

"Hey buddy, can you attach the web to surfaces?" Link whispered to the Spidershot as he crouched against the gate to stay out of sight. The Spider chirped and clicked for a few moments before climbing out of the mechanism with the green silk following it as it quickly raced across the wood and metal reinforced gate forming a spiderweb pattern before returning.

With a smile Link nodded while the spider rested in the shot mechanism once more leaving The Green Demon to his plans. While the spider had been making the web Link had gotten out nine of his Dragonfire bombs and was now sticking them to the gate putting three at the center with the other six in a circle pattern around them. After a moment Link grinned and stepped back about 10 feet before pulling out the Gale Boomerang.

~Link I believe this is what your people call terrorism... or is it arson?~ Gale mused sitting on his shoulder.

"I don't care I'm not going through that much crap just to get back in here again." Link muttered under his breath looking at the gate like a very personal demon.

~Very well, I will deliver you.~" Gale responded pecking his cheek before disappearing back into the boomerang causing the ruby at the bend to glimmer in the moonlight. The soft breeze of wind that began to wrap around the boomerang made him grin a bit as he drew in a large breath.

"I"M SICK OF THIS DAMN GATE AND I'M BLOWING IT TO HELL!" Link called out drawing the attention of the guards stationed atop the wall that looked to Link just as he snapped his fingeres sending a bolt of fire straight toward the bombs attached to the gate. Immediately after using the magic Link threw the boomerang creating the cyclone guard around himself just before the fire made contact.

"EVERYONE DOWN!" Yelled a guard who jumped off the wall and into the river below just as the explosion went off engulfing the whole area in blue flame as smoke rose into the air while the blast would shake the the area. While the blast buffeted Link a bit through the cyclone he still walked forward through the flames while Gale protected him until emerging on the other side of the gate seeing guards running away screaming.

"EVERYONE RUN!"

"STAY IN YOUR HOUSES!"

"THE GREEN DEMON HAS SET SEIGE UPON US!"

The last one though made Link glare as he reached into his bomb bag for one more but resisted the urge by taking a deep breath. However that calm was short lived as he heard off in the distance two voices from the center of Castle Town scream 'The Green Demon' as loud as possible which could be heard from the gate. Something in him triggered and he shifted his stance while pulling out the bomb, with one foot back he drew his throwing arm back before twisting his body and lobbing the bomb as hard as possible using his magic to light the fuse as the bomb traveled across Castle Town like a rocket.

For that one instant everyone between the gate and the fountain plaza looked up to see a bomb flying through the air, including the blonde captain that was standing roughly a foot behind Link considerably impressed with his arm.

However at the fountain plaza...

A blue explosion rang out as the weakened buildings of the cabbage and pottery merchants fell apart in ruin while their owners cried out in despair.

"M-m-m-my CABBAGESSSSS!"

"M-m-m-my POTTERYYYYY!"

"That was a sweet throw I gotta say." A feminine voice spoke behind Link but he didn't register the speaker as he grinned and turned around.

"Heh thanks, I didn't think I'd reach those jerks from... here... Shit." Link began enthusiastically before he set eyes on the golden captain he had ran from last time and his pep drained. Before him stood Yang clad in the same outfit as last time who had chased him through the streets last time he blew up their shops and this time... This time she held up an up to date wanted poster for 'The Green Demon'.

"Heh heyyyy... You aren't just gonna let me go are you?" Link asked with an instantly regretful look on his face. However to his surprise the young woman burst out laughing to the point of even dropping the wanted poster.

"Oh Din no! Haha that was a good one though, definitely a good joke." Yang responded with a smile her lavender eyes meeting his blue while her blonde hair flowed down her back like fire. After a moment Link smiled back and raised his arm aiming the Spidershot up and away from the woman. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Making my great escape madame." Link responded as he pulled the trigger and shot it.

"LIKE HELL YOU ARE!" She yelled and grabbed around him pressing his chest against her breasts as her arms held on with a death grip before the shot anchored and rapidly ripped the two blondes from the ground launching them up off the road as Yang screamed. "OH NO PUT ME DOOOOWN!"

Link couldn't help but smile through the pain of Yang's monster strength as he was reeled up on top of a building by the Spidershot. After reaching the roof he had to use the tautness of the Spidershot to keep from losing his balance as Yang clung to him with her eyes closed and her body shaking. Link looked at her rather confused before struggling to pull his arm out of her grip and hold her back and firing again at a building further from the main road and the Spidershot again reeled him across the rooftops. However she squeaked and hold him tighter, if this kept up much longer the dragon woman was gonna break his ribs.

"Ouch easy, I'm not invulnerable." Link complained as he reached the ally next to the building that he had came out of after meeting Bolin and gently pried her off of him setting her on her feet. After a moment her eyes slowly opened with tears at the edges. "...Captain?"

"I... I'm scared of h-heights..." Yang whispered while she looked away embarrassed, seeing the young powerful woman looking so vulnerable after she had chased him like ad ragon was a strange thing and he sighed softly before reaching back in his bag and pulling out a blue bomb before gently placing it in her hands.

"Here. You like fire and explosions right? This is a special bomb a friend made for me, don't light it." Link spoke softly while holding Yang's shoulders as she looked at the bomb before him. After she slowly nodded Link lightly patted her fluffy golden hair before turning and heading down the ally to reach the door and entrance to Bolin's lab.

"He... He said light it?" Yang said softly to herself while tilting her head before raising her fingers and sparking a bit of flame on the wick watching it burn. A moment later the bomb went off filling the alleyway with blue flame and smoke as the blonde was engulfed, however coughing could be heard within the cloud as Yang blinked away the smoke in her eyes before giggling.

"Hehe, I guess he isn't so bad, he really blue my mind, at least I'm going out with a yang." Four puns alter the blonde bombshell fell back unconscious in the epicenter of the blast's scorch marks blissfully taking a nap.

…

As Link descended the stairs he heard the blast from underground and stopped before blankly staring at the ceiling. 'Really? Even after I told her NOT to light it?'

With a sigh he continued his way down the steps until reaching the wide open area which served as Bolin's lab. At the sounds of footsteps the alchemist looked up with a smile and a wave, Volga However shot straight at him like a bullet filling his face with red as the dragon cuddle and nuzzled around Link's neck.

"Heh hey bro, missed you too." Link smiled pulling the dragon from his neck to look at him, however he was met with an angry dragon face, or at least he seemed angry as Volga blew a puff of flame at him. Yep, angry little dragon.

"Do you know how long you've been gone?! What are you wearing?! WHAT HAPPENED?!" The dragon yelled at Link before he smiled sheepishly carrying him over to the table Bolin was at.

"I'm sorry for worrying you. Both of you. A lot more happened than what I was expecting." Link began before going over the events of the past two days with Volga and Bolin. The alchemist bringing over food for them as well allowing the famished blonde to refuel some as he told his story. As Link finished both the man and the dragon looked at him like he was telling a tall tell before Link sighed and set the medallion down on the table for Bolin to see and when he did the man's eyes shot open.

"My word... This is truly one of the medallions, the same exact dimensions and he material is just as indecipherable..." Bolin began to mutter while examining the Ice Medallion, Volga however still glared at Link.

"You're telling us. You got arrested for having sex with a princess!?" Volga snapped making Link blush a bit and step back, after a moment of thinking about it he nodded quietly not proud of being arrested.

"Well it doesn't help that you're wanted here as well." Bolin said while he went through a book comparing the medallion to the material.

"Wait what? Why am I wanted here? All I did was a blow up a gate!" Link declared before the realization dawned on him.

"You did what?" Bolin questioned looking up from the book.

"It took me a long time to get in here... I wasn't taking the long route again." Link stated stubbournly while Bolin sighed and held the bridge of his nose.

"That was... in very poor judgment," The scholar exhaled which Link had a feeling was a nice way of saying incredibly stupid. "Before you were a wanted criminal for infiltrating the castle, initiating mortal combat with the Master Sword's chosen, and defiling the Zora Princess. Now you'll be wanted for terrorism, arson, destruction of state property, and endangering the populace..."

"Um..." Link stared at Bolin with wide eyes before looking at Volga who still glared at him. "For the record, I did not start the fight with my brother and the princess got me drunk and proceeded to defile me."

"Real good Link." Volga huffed before gliding over to a new table which Bolin had seemed to fashion into Volga's own space while he was there although Link did note the glass jar of red powder beside the area which Link noted as the same scale powder Baris collected from him. While Bolin sighed and continued to go through his books while checking the medallion seemingly to bury himself in research rather than dealing with the maelstrom of chaos that seemed to follow Link. So the young blonde moved over to Volga's area pulling up a chair and sitting beside him.

"So... You were that worried eh?" Link asked while grabbing a piece of meat from a container that Bolin had left for Volga offering the dragon the meat. With a glare the dragon snapped it out of Link's hand eating it. "I'm sorry, things kind of just spun out of control."

"...I understand," The dragon sighed while looking at the glass jar before climbing back up around Link's neck and laying on his shoulders. "We look out for each other, remember that."

"Heh got it." Link responded with a light smile reaching up to scratch just behind one of Volga's horns earning a faint purr before the dragon snapped at his fingers. After a short laugh Bolin passed by with another book which made Link curious so he followed him over tot he table.

"You said her name was Zera, correct?" Bolin asked as he arranged some ink and sheets of paper around the table keeping the medallion in clear sight.

"Yeah, that's right. Why do you ask?" Link leaned over to look at the book he had brought but it was completely blank, no title or cover and the pages were blank as well.

"I'm going to record her, the Eighth Sage and her tragic story." Bolin stated before placing a sheet of paper around the medallion and dabbing it in some ink before gently placing it on the cover of the book creating a replica of the symbol emblazoned on the Ice Medallion. The sight alone made Link speechless as he stared at it before slowly smiling.

"Link?... You're crying." Volga spoke softly looking at the blonde who had a tear on his cheek.

"Oh, it's nothing." Link quickly dismissed it wiping his face before patting Bolin's shoulder. "That would mean the world to her, thank you."

"It's the least I can do... The world will know there were eight sages, I swear it on my family line!" Bolin declared boldly before rapidly going to work recording the details Link had given him in excruciating detail. That dedication and passion made Link a little jealous he didn't have anything he felt that adamantly about although as he thought that he looked up to see the mirror across the way and remembered the shard in his bag.

Link began to move over to the mirror while taking out the shard and looking between the two for a moment before lining up which space it fit and and gently slotting it in. Although as he did and his fingers touched the plane of glass he felt a pulse against his skin and began to feel light-headed. That same voice filled his head once more but this time it had begun to feel... Gentle?

~Never forget... there's another ...rld bound to this one.~

As Link opened his eyes this time he thought he saw a shadow in the mirror a black cloak with blue markings streaming down it...

"Link?" Volga's voiced pulled Link from his stare and as soon as he blinked the image in the mirror was gone.

"S-Sorry what?" Link shook his head looking to the red dragon again.

"You've been staring in the mirror for five minutes now. I didn't think you were that vain." The dragon started off genuine but turned sarcastic which made Link chuckle a bit before stepping away from the mirror.

"Isn't your kind obsessed with shiny stuff?" Link countered before Volga feigned hurt.

"That's profiling ya know." The dragon quipped as Link reached Bolin's side once more who was still writing away with a burning passion.

"So... I know this will probably sound bad but... I have to get back into the castle. I know something is wrong with my brother and I have to get him out." Link said softly looking at the floor while Bolin slowly stopped writing before sighing and getting up.

"You realize short of rapists and serial killers you're currently the most wanted man in Hyrule's history?" Bolin asked as he looked at Link with an expression that was difficult to read. Link nodded without hesitation though. "Even though the castle will be on guard and filled to the brim with security given your last attempt?"

"I understand." Link confirmed again steadfast as ever and at that moment Bolin could see that look in his eyes, one that so many before him had. Slowly a smile appeared on the man's face as he reached out and patted Link on the shoulder. "Good. You wouldn't be the Hero of Souls if you weren't ready to face this."

"The Hero of Souls?..." Link asked losing his heroic demeanor and now seeming put off by the title.

"Precisely, every hero has had a specific title and Zera spoke to the soul of the Hero when you met." Bolin explained.

"Oh... Okay, if yout hink that fits." Part of the blonde didn't mind his title coming from Zera, it felt more meaningful that way even. Although his gaze moved to Bolin as he begin to rapidly move around collecting things around his lab. "What are you doing?"

"Well with how bad this is gonna go, I can't stay in Castle Town anymore and my only chance to come back is if you do take out the evil. So in the mean time I will relocate." The alchemist explained as he rearranged his effects minimizing the used space rather quickly almost completely packed in a few minutes before he came across a case which he borught over to Link. "Oh right I forgot, this is for you."

Link looked at him confused for a breif second before accepting the box which seemed to have a fine finish but was relatively simple and as he opened it he found himself staring. Within laid the brand new bow which Bolin had created for him, the wood looked like it was lacquered with the kind of stuff for the castle and along the arms were intricate runes leading to the almost silver string. "Whoa... This is amazing..."

"Heh, I'm glad you like it." Bolin smiled as he moved the mirror from its place closer to his things before laying it flat and staring at it for a moment. Link took out the mow testing the weight and draw for a moment before happily placing it on his back before Bolin spoke out again. "Oh by the way I'd like you to do something for me really quick."

"Sure what do you need?" Link inquired while Bolin brought him a piece of paper and a needle.

"Just prick yourself and focus on a drop of blood." Bolin explained while handing Link the needle. "This is a special type of paper which can register magic affinities in people."

"Oh... Alright." Link shrugged before removing a glove and pricking the back of his left hand before focusing and willing the blood out slowly making a bead of crimson roll off his hand and onto the paper. While Bolin handed him a bit of cloth to wipe off colors radiated from his drop of blood; pale green, red, purple, and pale blue.

"Excellent, you've gained wind, fire, shadow, and ice affinities already." Bolin stated happily before going back to his things, the information was good to know Link guessed. "Alright, I'm going to head to Hylia Town to the South West. I trust after you're done here you'll find me."

"Yeah of course, but I don't understand why you have to leave." Link said as he looked at Bolin feeling responsible for the problems that had plagued the man who had only tried to help him.

"Oh, right. You see the only way you'll probably be able to get in is through the waterways which is a secret exit only known by the well respected members of the royal court and magistrate. So when you enter that way I will be a suspect and a cohort of yours." Bolin explained as he picked up the Ice Medallion and made his way over to Link attaching it to his cloak. Before Link could speak again either the man shot him a look before standing up straight and fixing his glasses. "Look Link, it is the only way and I'm okay with that. I'll see you in Hylia Town. By the way you can also use a small bit of mana to change the color of this cloak, it seems receptive to low tier magic thanks to the Yeti that made it."

"...Thank you. Even though you don't know me or my brother... Thank you." Link softly said while his gaze to the floor feeling like a burden before Bolin placed his hand on his head.

"I don't need a reason to help someone right?" Bolin asked with a smile which Link repaid before looking around at the lab that was mostly packed up and began to head for the exit to return to the street.

"Speaking of finding a way out..." Volga started which made Link cringe as he scaled the steps to the street.

"Yeah... The crate." Link admitted with a sigh, the thought of it made him cringe as he stepped out of the door and onto the path carefully looking up and down the street while touching his shoulder and slowly willing his cloak to become a deep dark grey to match the stone work of the city.

"If you blew up the gate I'm sure the majority of people will be around there, humans flock to chaos after all." Volga stated while Link moved along the street staying close to the alleyways just in case. However the dragon proved to be correct as the few people he had seen were in fact moving too and from the gate he had blown to high hell.

"Yeah, looks like it." Link spoke softly as he reached the fountain square once again, however in the moment he was looking toward the smoking gate he failed to hear the despair filled sobs of the two men behind. As soon as he did he spun around quickly ready to bash whoever it was with his shield, however it was just the cabbage and pottery store owners. After realizing that Link just shrugged and moved past them not drawing their attention over the sombre sound of their sobs.

However as Link passed the fountain he looked down the other road where he had first come from when he arrived in Castle Town. An idea formed in his mind and he darted down the street careful to keep his gaze from meeting any of the people currently out. With a somewhat annoyed grunt Link pulled his hunting cap from his head and stuffed it in his cloak, he knew it was his most noticeable trait and the cloak covered the rest of his attire from view. "I've got an idea I want to check out."

"Alright but try to make it quick, the guards will only be distracted for so long." Volga warned him while looking back down the road behind them. Link eventually found his way to a familiar building in one of the alleys which seemed to be closed.

As he got closer he noted a sign tacked onto the door that read: 'Closed for the night, home near East gate.'

While that news was reassuring Link felt a little bad about it but its not like he destroyed any homes, just the gate. With a light nudge Link tested if the door was locked and indeed it wasn't, thankfully that would make things later easier. "Are we done now?"

"Yeah Volga, lets go." Link confirmed before heading straight for the castle while moving through the alleyways. This time he fired the Spidershot and reel himself onto the roofs finding them quite easy to traverse with how close together most of the buildings were built. However, he noticed a large wall with ornate metal spikes covering it spanning the distance of the city. As far as he could tell it seemed to be a boundary between the high and low class parts of Castle Town and sure enough he found gates leading to the fountain plaza as he neared the castle.

"So whats the plan from here?" Volga asked as they stood on the rampart of Hyrule Castle.

"Gotta find the water, we'll get in that way." Link confirmed before moving along the rampart while a silent breeze blew over him. For the most part he avoided the soldiers but a few times he nearly got caught but was saved by the shadows and the cloak's color. However in reality his Shadow Magic's invisibility allowed him to slip past undetected. After making it nearly all the way around the castle Link finally found a water way flowing into one of the canals of the city and used the Spidershot to leap to closer rooftops and make his descent down to the canal. "Alright, we made it. That wasn't too bad."

"Really now Green Demon?" A voice pierced the night making Link wince as he slowly looked over to the waterway's entrance. The same woman with gold eyes walked out of the shadows while her black cat ears flicked and she held a rather large blade in one of her hands looking like a cleaver turned sword. "You shouldn't rely on Shadow Magic so much."

"Heh, hey... you." Link said oh so poignantly as he remembered that he hadn't got the woman's name last time she caught him sneaking in before what she had said dawned on him. "I actually don't know how I'm doing it, I think it just happens when I don't want to be seen."

"Possibly, magic tends to be very tied to emotion. You need to leave." The woman confrimed Link's suspicions before blatantly telling him to scram.

"I can't do that. My brother is in there and I have to save him, I don't know what's wrong but something dark is happening to him." Link stated boldly but he was startled as the woman unsheathed another smaller blade from the first in a flash closing the distance between them to a mere three feet.

"You're sure about that? When going forward means you're going to meet me in battle? One of the princess' Royal Guard?" The woman warned with a cold tone her predatory golden eyes having a glow in the darkness. In that first moment Link felt fear staring at the battle ready woman but something inside him ignited and the mark on the back of his hand began to glow with gold light.

"Yes. I won't back down and I'll keep moving forward!" Link declared as he ran straight at the cat woman who paused briefly when she saw the Triforce glimmering on his hand. That moment let Link get right beside her before her eyes narrowed and she dropped her arm slamming the pommel down against his back. However, the moment before impact a gust of wind filled that space and Link was gone.

"Gonna have to try harder than that!" Link called back a few feet past her having used his Wind Magic's saving wind to get past the cat. With a light smile the cat sheathed her weapons before vanishing. In that moment Link ran straight into her stepping back as she looked at him staring right in front of the canal's opening.

"I'll tell you what. If you have any fish on you, give me that and I'll let you through." The cat woman shrugged looking at him unexpectedly with her hand out. Link simply blinked looking between her face and her hand before something came back to him. He quickly grabbed his bag and reached inside with his full arm and pulled it out holding a fresh Stealthfin Trout while a huge grin plastered on his face.

"You... Just have fish on you?" The dark-haired woman asked looking at the fish he put in her hand.

"Not usually, my bag fell in a lake a few hours ago." Link explained which received a light nod before the woman sighed and stepped aside.

"A deal is a deal." She said while pulling out some material to wrap the fish in. With a smile Link ran past her inside but stopped to look back at her.

"Oh by the way I never caught your name." The blonde inquired looking at the cat as she stowed away the fish. The woman glanced at him before turning away.

"It's Blake." She said before vanishing before his sight. A faint smile played on Link's face as he turned and headed back into the canal. Meanwhile Blake stood atop the wall Link had descended from to begin with.

"Blake? Did you decide to join the perimeter sweep?" Impa asked walking up from the rampart's path.

"Taking lunch, it's kinda late after all." Blake confirmed turning to look at the Sheikah Clan leader who nodded her head while walking past her. However she paused for a moment and looked back at the cat woman.

"Do you smell fish?" Impa inquired as Blake vanished from view.

…

"She seems nice." Volga commented looking back the way they had come while Link sprinted through the water ways.

"Yeah I guess, this is the second time she let me go." Link commented as he looked back at Volga. However as he rounded the corner he ran into another person, the pale man from when he had fought Ganondorf. With a quick shift Link leaped back and draw his blade in reverse grip. "You! What did you do to my brother?!"

"How predictable~ I mean really, the Hero always has to come save the day~ It's disgusting..." The man said putting on this grand flourish until letting it fall flat at the end with a glare at Link. "I've watched you, time and time again rise up to defeat my master's curse and I'm sick of it."

"I don't care what you want!" Link yelled before bolting across the stone aiming to slam his cleaved blade into the man's gut. However he met resistance as stronger than the gate he had blown up earlier and as he looked down he saw the pale man with his fingers clasped tightly on the flat of his blade keeping the edge from touching him.

"That tenacity, that will, that COURAGE. I'll make sure it never rears its ugly head again!" The man growled before slamming his knee into Link's gut sending him flying back against the stone wall of the water way for Link to fall to his knees heaving.

"Link! Come on you can do this! You beat the Queen Dodongo! Zera trusted you with her memory!" The dragon kept pushing it's head against Links trying to motivate the young man as he slowly made his way to his feet, a trickle of blood coming from the corner of his mouth.

"Hmph insignificant whelp. That beast was given the shard to ensure that your race was be wiped from this plane. As for Zera, heh I relish the pain that foolish woman felt. So stupid following her heart, her love for the Her- ugh... huh?" Ghirahim chided mocking Volga before moving on to belittle Zera as well, however it was at that point a surge of ice shot down Link's arm and formed the ice blade once more and he turned in a fast motion before slamming down the blade against the pale man's back with a Mortal Draw. Though the result was far less impressive this time as Link's eyes quickly lost their golden glimmer and Ghirahim merely had a long cut across his back. "You CUT me?"

"Link we need to run." The red dragon began to panic as Link stumbled back the ice blade cracking and falling away as quickly as it had formed.

"You know what Hero, the best time my master ever had was when you had to sleep. For seven years." The pale man declared as his face turned into a maniacal grin. In a quick flourish he spread his hands out wide before magical energies converged in each of his palms, however even through the pain Link noticed that one seemed to be a pure white light while the other was a black and purplish mass with bits floating inside like stone. "So how about this. Go back to the Sacred Realm. And don't come back!"

Before Link could even begin to move Ghirahim launched the spell creating a purple and white glyph beneath Link which spun and pulsed with magical energy before the rays swirled up and around Link blurring everything away from his vision.

As Link and Volga floated there in a sort of stasis, energy and power shifted around them until the gold flash radiated from his hand and it slowly began to guide the chaotic energies as the Light touched him and the Dark wove in-between.

Where Link found himself this time? Or... Where would he visit again?


End file.
